


Of Masks and Mirrors

by Zaviire



Category: Final Fantasy XIII Series, Final Fantasy XIII-2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-13
Updated: 2016-04-13
Packaged: 2018-03-22 15:45:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 96,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3734410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaviire/pseuds/Zaviire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>To serve and protect. That was the oath they both swore, to different people and for different reasons throughout the ages — and what those reasons have been twisted into over time wound up pitting them into a bloody conflict. But with more pressing concerns at hand, the Goddess’s hand has been forced; and even they, equally strong-willed, bitter rivals, have no place to defy divinity.</p><p>Forced into servitude as l'Cie for the goddess Etro, Caius Ballad and Lightning Farron must see to it that they complete their Focus — in exchange for supposed ’rewards‘… Assuming that Etro can deliver on Her promises.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Etro's Ultimatum

_Valhalla._ A realm without time, a realm beyond death – the home of the divine goddess Etro. A realm where there are few rules, but foremost: the weak answer to the strong. A realm marred by battle – the clashing of swords by two locked in mortal combat, steel against steel and flashes of violet and black and pink and white, a realm where destruction was the norm. Day in, day out – if days could truly be called days, that was. They rarely tired, rarely parted, but when blows were exchanged and blood was spilled, they were with intent to kill.

His sword was ripped out of his hands with one last sweep of Odin’s blade before the eidolon was dismissed in a flurry of petals – and his adversary came rushing out of them. The instant the blade audibly stuck into the ground below, she’d connected her foot with his gut and he was sent over the edge of the building they were standing on and landed with a sickening thud onto the concrete below, eyes blank and jaw slack and he drew in a shuddering breath before he stilled entirely. She leapt down and landed with all the grace of a cat, footsteps silent as she approached his body. Blood began pooling on the ground below his head and she winced when she walked around to get a better view of the injury – and immediately wished she hadn’t. It was bad enough that he was, at least temporarily, dead (she found herself unable to resist the temptation to verify it; two fingers against his neck verified that indeed, at the very least _his_ heart had stopped beating). She averted her eyes, instead focusing her gaze on the light red glow that slowly built in his chest and spread slowly outward, beginning to pull his body back together.

She stood over him with her sword and shield at the ready. Every muscle in her body was coiled in anticipation of the moment he would blink the glaze of death out of his eyes and he would be upon her again, bearing down on her with that massive sword of his or chasing her down on wings of night. It was an inevitable part of their battles – not that she would complain. She would off him as many times as it took, and thus far she’d kept count and note of each cause of death: both actual deaths (as in, after he didn’t just get up, she verified that he had no pulse) stemmed from the same method she’d used this time around. By now they were on far more equal footing than when they first faced each other on the battlefield; for all the raw power Caius possessed, Lightning made up for the difference with skill. Her blade found gaps in his armor and she made use of her superior maneuverability to duck out of the way of broad, powerful swings of his sword that required precious seconds of recovery. Of course, Caius was still a force to be reckoned with, and Lightning was slowly growing tired of their encounters, but at least the playing field was pretty level.

But how could you win against an opponent you couldn’t _kill_? Destroy the Heart of Chaos and it was game over. But he couldn’t die permanently otherwise. Always, the glaze of death over his eyes would be temporary, and no matter how badly wounded, the Heart of Chaos would continue quietly working. It would pull him together enough to drag him back from oblivion again and again without end. Always, even after his true heart stopped beating and his chest stilled, he would get back up and be completely fine. Completely rejuvenated too, usually, presumably unless she damaged his body further after death – but she certainly didn’t fancy herself a _butcher._ Caius may have slowly lost his grip on his humanity over the centuries, but he’d had no fewer than fourteen hundred years. Lightning was twenty-one – at least from her standpoint. Time stilled for her the instant she set foot in Valhalla, but that did little to change the fact that there was no way she was as experienced as he was – but in exchange, she was perhaps more… Adaptable. Not as set in her ways. She’d actually managed to land killing blows, although they obviously didn’t do much to turn the tide of their battles.

Sometime toward the beginning of all this, she’d wondered how many times he’d died before Valhalla. His armor was eerily clean of any marks of battle, but over time it seemed that they simply disappear through some means or another if the number of times she’d pierced it with her own blade only for it to be fine later was any indication. She wondered if the pain of continued death and resurrection, at some point, would be enough to make Caius give in and give up – but she already had a faint idea how their war would end and all signs currently pointed to ‘ _no_ ’.

She avoided meeting his dead eyes now only because the damage done to his head upon impact made her a bit squeamish, instead settling her gaze on the glowing Heart of Chaos in his chest, and when he sucked in a breath and stirred before starting to stand, she was ready, blade levelled at his throat as he rose.

“That’s three. Ready to quit, Ballad?”

He only smirked at her, righting himself gradually and propping himself up on his sword while he made sure everything was in proper order. How polite his adversary was to allow him time to take care of such (honestly sort of petty) formalities. The pool of blood he’d been laying in dyed the hair at the back of his head and some of the tails of his headband red and he could feel it, sticky and starting to cool, and it was irritating to an extent but no harm no foul. “You know the answer to that question, _warrior goddess_.” Perhaps before, he would have offered a serious answer, but their banter had long-since become a mainstay of their conflicts, so why not taunt her a little? He knew the inevitable outcome of their battles anyway – even if she sought to defy her fate.

He swung first, and then it was back to the old routine. They battled in the streets and upon rooftops; Lightning didn’t manage to push Caius back and Caius didn’t manage to push Lightning back and gain ground toward the temple. Their blades clashed and locked and were it not for the inherent violence in their movements, maybe they could have been dancing – always they were light on their feet and always they kept in a steady rhythm interrupted only by Caius’s occasional shifts into Chaos Bahamut, but those stints were put to rest soon enough when Lightning called upon Odin or the shining white Bahamut that she’d felled to earn the right to enter Etro’s temple in the first place. However, in most cases it was simply easier for them to leave the eidolons out of it; this battle was _theirs_ and _theirs alone_ and even if Chaos Bahamut was more or less just an extension of Caius to begin with, such a bulky form did not lend itself well to fighting on ground level in the streets of the city or on the tops of some of the lower-standing buildings. It just made it harder to get to Lightning in the first place, even if his attacks were decidedly more powerful and harder to block.

By the time the clock struck ten and the skies of Valhalla lit up – actually _lit up!_ – the two of them were covered in blood (their own, each other’s) and were about to trade the deciding blow of round two.

The skies of the Unseen Realm tended to follow cycles not dissimilar to the mortal world’s day and night, although the times at which they changed were rather arbitrary and lacked a smooth transition here, or if it had one, they were so caught up in their battles that they rarely noticed it. Sometimes, it rarely even mattered, given the sky seemed perpetually on the verge of rain. One moment, it would simply be dark, and the warriors would usually retreat – the next, daybreak was upon them and they would clash.

Their swords locked and a single white feather fell between them, lingering on the side of Caius’s greatsword before slipping away and dissolving. Then another, and Lightning risked a glance up to the sunless sky, which nonetheless engulfed the entire field of her vision in white.

Then: briefly, an image of a doorway carved into a mountain, briefly an image of a young girl, enveloped in black mist. Other images that, when isolated, made little sense; nothing cohesive, not like the vision of Ragnarok she’d seen when she and the others had been branded by Anima what felt like an eternity ago now. Neither of them made a sound, but Caius’s lips formed the name _‘Yeul’_ , his eyebrows furrowed as if in concentration even as Etro’s champion felt his sword fall away from hers and heard the tip of the blade as it hit the ground and Lightning’s lips parted in shock as the images sped along, grainy and fuzzy and she knew what this vision meant, vaguely but not definitely as she felt a symbol burning itself into her skin where her Pulse brand had once been and the soft brush of a rain of feathers against her exposed skin before the whole world finally, suddenly, shrank and went dark.

 

* * *

 

_‘If this is truly what you wish… Then I will become your sword as well.’_

 

* * *

 

The sun warmed his skin and the wind toyed with his hair as it flowed over him. The air tasted – and smelled – of the sea, and the sound of the waves against shore was almost frighteningly close. It was nice, though, in a way – and his breath escaped him with a contented sigh as his eyes flickered open a little. He didn’t process much of anything at first, thinking it an illusion of some sort: the blue sky above, the warm stone beneath, the figure he couldn’t bring into full focus thanks to the sun being more or less directly overhead. He let his head fall to the side before the realization hit him – this was real. The world was solid, and it wasn’t about to fall away and return him to Valhalla any time soon.

Confusion struck him first, then panic as he shot upright and reached for his sword – or started to, because the figure beside him pressed their hands to his shoulders and kept him from moving around too much in those first few moments as the world snapped into abrupt focus and he gathered his bearings. His sword was nowhere to be seen, and he really _was_ lying on the shore, although it was more sheer rock than soft sand as it met the water, and he had a distinct feeling of being _sore_ _all over_. He let himself be forced back down at that, with a huff, letting his eyes adjust so that he could identify whoever had decided to accompany him.

They had pink hair not dissimilar to Lightning’s, with the same intense eyes – and it was only after a few moments that he realized it _was_ Lightning; he almost didn’t recognize her without the armor (her clothes were strange… Or at least, they struck him as strange before he realized that they were the same clothes she’d worn in the Yeul of this era’s vision of her being attacked by the chaos), without the backdrop of Valhalla behind her, without her literally and figuratively at his throat (though granted, only because he’d attacked her _first_ ). His lips pulled back in a snarl and he nearly lunged for her when Lightning spoke, surprisingly gently compared to the manner of speech he was used to, but still very much firm: “I was starting to wonder when you’d wake up.”

Words failed him for a moment before he managed to cut right to the heart of the matter: “Where am I?” Nowhere near where he needed to be, by the looks of things. The question was honestly sort of pointless; he’d been here before with a Yeul, and before she could answer he demanded instead, “ _How_ did I get here?” He couldn’t have kept the irritation (and perhaps, a bit of distress) out of his voice if he tried.

Lightning brought one hand up to her chest, then released his shoulders as she stood. Caius followed suit, examining the palms of his hands briefly and scowling when they came away from the ground sandy. Nowhere was safe from its grainy wrath, it seemed, as long as they were within a mile or two of an actual beach.

“Etro brought us here, if this and—” she gestured to the ground and Caius’s eyes followed, revealing a message etched faintly into the stone— “ _this_ is any indication.”

He looked over the symbols over and over, anger flashing in his eyes although he remained quiet. She had to be joking. _‘She’_ , of course, referring to both Lightning and Etro. Did he look like some sort of cosmic plaything? He brought his left hand up to the back of his neck and his fingers came into contact with his armor, of course, but he could feel some sort of symbol almost burning into his skin, and he realized that she _wasn’t_ joking. His eyes widened briefly, ever so briefly, when he realized what it was. The smooth curves formed the same emblem he’d seen flash in Yeul’s eyes during her visions, and—“I’m a l’Cie.” He didn’t even bother phrasing it as a question. _Then the sky, and those images…_ But that was impossible.

(Only the ache in all of his joints and behind his eyes that strangely intensified the hotter the anger burned at the back of his throat kept him from lashing out, kept him from grabbing hold of her neck and putting and end to this right here.)

“ _We_ are l’Cie,” she corrected (and confirmed). Judging from the look in her eyes, there was more to it than that, but whatever personal issues she had about the matter were of no interest to him. At that, Caius scowled. And Lightning started away, though after a few steps she came to a halt. “I don’t expect you to cooperate. But considering your end goal, I’m guessing you’re not prepared to just turn Cie’th.” She huffed a bit, as if the prospect itself were a joke – but of course, Lightning knew better.

He could have laughed at those words. As if he would in the first place; Etro was too merciful to curse any human with such a fate. The goddess was soft, and in the end deserving only of pity; she hadn’t even the strength or the experience to give them their Focus in a relatively cohesive manner, instead just comprised of brief flashes of images of unfamiliar (rather, vaguely familiar, but with marked differences from what he could recall) locations and of Yeul – then stuck the emblem of her gate on their bodies and called it done.

“You’re her champion; you can figure it out.” He had more pressing concerns – the most pressing of which was certainly either finding a shortcut to Valhalla (he’d waited centuries, would he really be condemned to wait centuries more?!) or finding the Yeul of this era, assuming Etro was smart enough to make sure only one version of him existed at a time. Given that she seemed to have the strength to brand them and send them back to 3AF, he figured she probably made an effort. He rolled his shoulders back in an effort to get some of the tension wound up in his body to release, to no avail, but as Lightning continued he managed to get his neck to give a satisfying _pop_ , and then the same for several of his knuckles.

“… _We_ can figure it out. Etro gave this Focus to both of us.” The words sounded like they were physically painful to admit, almost, but they were firm nonetheless. She brought one hand up and gestured for him to follow her. It took the better part of his willpower not to spit at her.

He was sure he could survive well enough while he found wherever she’d been left, even unarmed. It wasn’t like he hadn’t braved the wilderness of Gran Pulse alone before. It wasn’t like he’d done exactly that for the past fourteen centuries of his life, actually, albeit as Cocoon’s population spread out over the planet’s vast plains and they built up their cities and their towns, sometimes it became difficult to qualify it as _pure_ wilderness. Alright, so maybe they occasionally indulged in modern comforts, but only those that they could partake in without falling under the eye of actual people.

But when Lightning turned and looked him in the eye, hand dropped and poised to draw her gunblade if the need arose, he couldn’t help but feel something inside him will him to stay, not to strike out on his own. It wasn’t pleasant. It was more like a knife through his eye, actually. She looked deadly serious, even more so than in Valhalla, to the point where now she looked legitimately _angry_ ; and while Caius was spectacularly good at ignoring his better angels and every passing moment without Yeul at his side meant she was in danger (well…), there was just something about the look in her eyes (and the tone of the voice in the back of his head that willed him to follow) that told him that it would be costly and painful if he were to refuse her ‘ _invitation_ ’.

He didn’t give her the satisfaction of voicing his submission, instead silently following and casting his gaze into the wild beyond just over the cliffs as they started off south. Every part of his body still felt _stiff_ and _awful_ , and it didn’t get any better as they walked. Not a single word passed between them and Lightning’s hand never strayed far from her blade; the only thing missing were shackles, and then he would have been a real prisoner. The sun beating down on his back got old quickly – perhaps leather and metal weren’t the best things to wear to the shore – but at least the heat seemed effective at keeping the monsters at bay and forcing his body to relax a little. As stone subsided to sand, Lightning came to a halt, finally drawing her blade and pointing it at Caius’s throat. He took a half-step back and acknowledged her with a soft grunt before she said, “I _believe_ Etro sent Serah and Noel back to this era as well. Leave them be, don’t speak unless spoken to, and stay close to me and we won’t have an issue.”

“You are not my _keeper_ ,” he growled, although he did not disagree to her terms.

She ignored his words as she lowered her weapon, though it remained firmly gripped in her hand. There wasn’t really anything besides the knowledge that she’d likely chase him down and the exhaustion that permeated his body to keep him from starting off in the opposite direction. “Glad to know we’re on the same page,” she said, stepping onto the beach and, in short order, into the town once she cleared a wire fence.

He hesitated, but followed suit, trailing a ways behind her as she climbed a set of stairs to a large, rather nice house. Caius stayed behind, letting his gaze scan the horizon. There was little bit clear blue water as far as the eye could see, with other landmasses only appearing on the very edge of the horizon. He heard Lightning call his name from inside after a bit and he reluctantly climbed the stairs and found himself in the company of more people focused on him specifically than he’d encountered since… Since long before he departed from Valhalla, when there were still people around in the Dying World seven hundred years or so in the future. His lips parted as he looked this rather peculiar (was that the word? There were probably more accurate ones to describe them, but…) motley of characters over, before he recalled Lightning’s instruction not to speak unless spoken to. Simple enough; he didn’t have anything particularly nice to say anyway.

Including Lightning, there were eight of them in total (did they all share this house?), and most of them didn’t seem sure what to make of him while Serah, the blond man who needed a shave to her left who had her hand clasped in his, and Noel immediately regarded him with wary (bordering on hostile, even, in the case of the former two) looks.

That suited him just fine, of course. Caius hadn’t expected a warm welcome. He regarded the group coldly while Lightning introduced them – first him, to the group, by full name, and then the group to him. The dark-haired woman Lebreau; the blond kid with the goggles (well, he looked _enough_ like a kid, with his round face, that Caius kind of just _assumed_ he was a kid) Maqui; the heavy-set dark-skinned man Gadot; the blue-haired young man Yuj; and their so-called fearless leader Snow – whom he vaguely recognized from one of Yeul’s visions. None of them struck him as particularly impressive right off the bat and he was sure that he’d forget them in due time, but he gave them a slight nod of acknowledgement anyway. Lightning filled them in on some details – not many, but enough to turn the room against him.

From there, the conversation continued on in a direction that honestly he just tuned out and eventually Lightning excused herself to the bathroom for a shower; at that point, Caius slipped out onto the deck and took a seat against the wall just out of sight. Thankfully at this time of day some shade was provided – he couldn’t think of a single saving grace of the shore at this point. Relaxing, yes, but only in half-remembered dreams and only when he didn’t have anything better to be doing (saving Yeul, for example!); the sand got everywhere, the sun was too hot, and the air was far too salty for his liking. Alright, maybe there was one saving grace – it wasn’t all that humid at the moment.

He huffed to himself quietly and pushed his headband up a little. Just bolting, or drawing out his eidolith so that he could wreak some havoc and make his escape had crossed his mind a few times, but every time something inside him (stabbed him in the eye and) told him _no_. He was certain that Etro must have done something to compromise his will, but he’d find a way to circumvent that check eventually, for Yeul’s sake. Perhaps even, it was wiser to go with the flow for a bit, see what Lightning wanted to do about _her_ Focus (she was surely competent enough).

“Caius.”

He looked up at Noel, who stood over him with his arms crossed over his chest. For a long few moments, they just stared each other down, Caius’s irritation slowly mounting before he looked away when Noel seemed to be suddenly incapable of speech for several long moments. And when he _did_ open his mouth to speak, Caius merely cut him off – “My end goal hasn’t changed.”

And that seemed to answer that. “It still won’t make her happy, you know.”

“As long as she _lives_ , that’s ultimately inconsequential. Even now that you know what you do, you continue to insist against her salvation?” Caius pressed his lips together. If Yeul lived, then there was plenty of time to _make_ her happy after the fact. He shrugged after a moment, and simultaneously changed the subject and closed the conversation. “Regardless. I’ve a feeling I’ll be here a while.”

Had the words passed a friend’s lips, perhaps Noel would have smiled at that – but knowing of Caius’s plans and wishes, he wasn’t so sure that his continued presence was much to celebrate about. At least Lightning proved to be a worthy opponent to him; she’d managed to keep Noel safe long enough to send him back to Serah, after all, and who knew how long after that until they’d wound up _here_. “Yeah… right,” he managed, rocking back on his heels a bit. His lips parted to continue, but with the way Caius’s eyes seemed to threaten to sear hole through his chest, he figured it could wait for another time and turned to return to the group inside the house.

 

* * *

 

The warm water on her shoulders felt like nothing short of heaven. While it was a luxury that she didn’t necessarily need – it seemed that, along with being stripped of her armor and placed back in her old Guardian Corps uniform, Etro had managed to strip her of much of the filth of Valhalla before plunking her and Caius back in 3AF, and she assumed that much the same was true of _him_ – it certainly did wonders to relax, and buy her some valuable time. More than once, she found herself pausing to place a hand over her brand, etched into her skin in the shape of Etro’s Gate rather than the intricate network of lines and arrows that she bore as a Pulse l’Cie three years (from a chronological standpoint) prior. And also more than once, she found her hand coming to rest over her right breast as she considered the true extent of what Etro had done, what this meant.

The sooner their Focus was complete, the sooner everyone would be safe from Caius and the sooner things could just be… _Normal_. With the major cracks in the timeline patched up thanks to Serah and Noel’s efforts, the goddess didn’t have to try as hard to keep the chaos in check and could spend some energy building Her strength back up, although the thought of her ever attaining Her former glory was laughable at best. But She did this for humanity’s sake, not for Her own selfish desires. Etro was truly deserving of sympathy from that standpoint, and She certainly had Lightning’s gratitude for being so… merciful. Having proven herself in Valhalla, when this final task was complete, Lightning could have her life back, if only for a little while.

But a little while was more than she could begin to ask for.

A sigh escaped her lips and she let her head fall forward a bit. Already she could tell that it would likely be easier said than done; getting Caius to cooperate was a challenge in of itself. But at least if all else failed, Etro had a bit of insurance in the case of her failure, although it was at a heavy cost to Lightning herself. But if that was what it took to atone for her sins once and for all, then so be it.

But things could be taken one step at a time. With Snow and Serah living here (and only one free bedroom; that wouldn’t do) and the NORA gang treating the house as their little hangout and second home, she needed somewhere to stay. What else? More clothes, her belongings. She was sure that they had salvaged _some_ things from Cocoon, although Eden had apparently crashed on Bodhum after the final battle. A plan of action was also in order, she figured, and she had a vague idea of how she wanted to approach this, but no backup plan if she was forced to reveal more than she was planning on at the moment.

So the final tally: A place to stay, her belongings, a plan. Only the latter was a real necessity, which was a blessing seeing as it was the only really difficult one to come by, at least when she was dealing with a man who would stop at nothing to save _one_ girl.

She had her work cut out for her.


	2. Common Ground

Serah and all the rest had been understandably disappointed when Lightning revealed that they wouldn’t be staying with them past the night, but in the end they ended up working together to make short work of her arrangements. There was a medium-sized home tucked into the brush on the cliffs just west of town, and while it was a bit precarious to get up there, neither she nor Caius had any trouble. It had been arranged to be constructed just a year after Cocoon’s fall, right when the town was growing in earnest – but the woman who commissioned it wound up moving with her family elsewhere just before it was finished. The construction workers, of course, decided to wrap up the project anyway, figuring it would be occupied at a later date when more people moved down to Pulse, and ever since it’d been sitting pretty waiting for someone to buy or rent it. It had two bedrooms on opposite ends of the house with a sort of composite living room, dining area, and kitchen between, and the bathroom just off to the side, closer to Lightning’s room. It was cozy, and – with a bit of furnishing – could have been a dream home.

It was empty on the inside save for the essentials – a refrigerator, a sink, other kitchen appliances, but they didn’t work until the gas was turned on on their fourth day staying there, so Lightning was forced to turn her attention away from Caius and head down to the NORA house if she wanted a warm meal and hot shower. It soon became routine even after the gas was turned on, although more for the want of company than the need for warm food and a shower, and the violet-haired man didn’t mind the privacy a bit, although for whatever reason it felt as if he was never _truly_ alone – it unnerved him a bit to be able to wander into the wilderness, to be completely isolated and surrounded by nothing but trees and the stray monster here or there, and still feel like he was being watched.

He could probably flee to either of Pulse’s poles, where there were nothing but sheets upon sheets of ice stretching into the horizon, and still not shake the feeling.

By the middle of the second week, the house was still empty, but they obtained mattresses. Rather, Lightning obtained a _single_ mattress, and some blankets, and some pillows; Caius got a mat, which wasn’t much more comfortable than the hardwood floor, and one too-flat pillow and one blanket that didn’t cover him completely by a long shot. But for a man who’d slept in every setting one could possibly imagine (probably), there was no complaint to be made.

They’d also settled into their own routines by then. Caius woke with the sun and Lightning long before; Lightning took her showers in the morning and Caius took his in the evening. They rarely spoke but when their paths crossed, they usually spared each other a glance – Lightning’s gaze tended to remain careful and measured, while Caius regarded her with the same sort of look a predator might use when observing prey. But never did they allow their intentions to slip. When they spoke, it was of Valhalla, of Etro, of their Focus, and even those conversations lacked fluff and were short-lived either out of unwillingness to answer a question or unwillingness to delve too much into the details on either of their parts; what was there to say between she who wished to see it finished and he who possessed a strong enough will to forsake a diety?

The second week ended with a late start and an early morning.

 

* * *

 

Lightning had, over the course of her military career on Cocoon, trained herself to be a morning person. Training had demanded it and after that it just became an ingrained habit. She rose long before dawn to take care of her morning routine – shower first, then slap some clothes on and scrape up some breakfast – or, she usually did. When she emerged from her room still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, the sunlight had already begun filtering in through the windows and illuminating the whole house, and she knew without looking that Caius was already up and about. She rested her hand on the bathroom door as she rounded the corner into the main living space, and she was about to complete the turn into the room when she decided to spare Caius a glance.

He returned the favor, smirking at her and resting most of his weight against the wall closest to his room. He seemed to be enjoying the sunrise with a mug of coffee cradled in his hands. There was, unfortunately, no way that he had thought to make an extra cup for her since he’d so brazenly stolen hers... She caught herself staring at him a bit dumbly, as if she hadn’t processed his presence for several long moments – caught herself looking him over. He was already dressed and prepared for the day, armor and all, although the tails of his headband hung free behind him instead of draped over his shoulders. The warm light of the sunrise treated his form differently than the shadows of Valhalla had, softening a few of his sharper edges – although he looked no less intimidating for it. He’d turned, and those cold eyes were fixed on her, and she had to look away after a few moments. She gave him a curt nod and pushed her way into the bathroom, closing the door again behind her.

She turned on the water and let it warm a bit, a torrent flowing out into the tub, before with a flick of a switch it stopped and started coming out of the showerhead a few feet above instead. It was a bit archaic – but this set up, with the shower curtain and all, had its charms. Plus, a shower was a shower.

By the time she’d finished her business and emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her torso in an effort to protect her modesty, Caius had already made himself scarce. She scowled a bit but made no move to actually do anything about it, and once she’d gotten dressed – no use decking herself out in uniform, so just a loose-fitting, dark-colored tank top and some shorts would do just fine – she stepped into the kitchen to make herself some oatmeal. It was nice to go through the motions again, she supposed, even if it was on Etro’s watch and she had to keep a close eye on Caius’s activities to make sure he didn’t stray.

Although, she questioned their ability to work together toward that goal. Several times, Etro had reached to her in her dreams (and, she presumed, to Caius, but if she did, he never made any mention of it), although they were all half-remembered and unclear. She may have been Etro’s champion, and she (vaguely) understood some of the dreams, and she thought she understood her Focus, but she did _not_ understand the goddess completely or clearly around half the time.

After the water came to a boil, it was a simple operation, and she poured the contents of the small, brown packet into the water before removing it from the heat. After a minute or two, she stirred the oatmeal around in the small pot before spooning some of it into a bowl and waiting for it to cool before she dug into her breakfast.

 

* * *

 

Unarmed, he had to tread carefully the farther away from town he strayed. Unarmed, he also couldn’t have his breakfast of choice (though honestly he was craving meat enough that he might just make do with his bare hands or, perish the thought, magic, even though it was likely far more trouble than it was worth), so a mug of (frankly disgusting) coffee before setting out and some edible fruit it was. He sat perched on a rock formation extending just over the water, out of sight of the town, peeling back the vibrant, thick skin of a fruit he’d actively sought out almost every day since he found that the food Lightning kept on hand was either (a) not particularly appetizing, (b) specifically for her and her alone, or (c) prepackaged and labeled in an alphabet he could not read, and not all of the directions or the identities of some of the products could immediately be discerned through common sense or process of elimination (leading back to the fact that their identities could not be ascertained). It took a few moments and his fingers slipped a few times (perhaps he should have held off on cutting his nails) but eventually the pure white flesh underneath was exposed. After removing enough skin, he bit into it – it was a little tangy (no, actually, very tangy – but in a good way) and clear juice started getting everywhere afterwards but was it ever worth it. He paused for a moment when he realized that many, many Yeuls would have _loved_ this sort of fruit, but pushed the thought out of his mind (or rather, filed it away for later, for when he found her again).

Every so often, he came across tiny black seeds, but they were of no consequence; he merely spit them out and continued. Before long, nothing worth eating of the flesh remained, and he discarded the skin, wiped the juice away, and continued on his way. In the morning, the world was quiet, impossibly quiet, and he appreciated being left alone to his thoughts to an extent, but the fact that he would invariably return to Lightning before the morning was over only to set off again whether he truly wished to return or not put a damper on his mood a bit. He’d stopped trying to avoid it a while ago. A few flowers were beginning to wake up as well, and again his thoughts went to Yeul. It was an unavoidable truth that after more than fourteen hundred years of life and hundreds upon hundreds of seeresses, it was the little things that he couldn’t avoid that would remind him of her, and invariably of her tragic fate.

A Yeul who dreamed of travel. A Yeul who loved to sing. A Yeul who collected flowers.

All of their lives were lost far too soon, often ending without warning. For some, it was the visions that squeezed their last breath from them – other times, they simply lay in his arms slowly withering away. For others, they saw the future, how things would end – and rushed off to their dooms only for him to find her broken body later. The shock never wore off and while he usually shed tears for each of them when their time came, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d truly broken down and wept.

The world was bathed in quiet, broken only by the near-silent sound of his footstep in the grass and the sound of some insects minding their own business. Distant birdsong began once the sun had fully risen over the horizon and the sky had started to favor blue over peach. He resolved to ignore whatever force tugged, prodded, and stabbed (in that order) at the edges of his awareness for as long as possible to enjoy this peace; he resolved previously to overcome it completely a week ago, and that certainly hadn’t happened yet, but baby steps. He tilted his head to the sky and crossed his arms. Over the edge of the cliffs were alternately dark water and rocks and strips of beach; around the bend and in the other direction, toward the house, was the town. The waves assaulted the rocks and tried to pull the land down into the sea with little success and it was only in this quiet that Caius could appreciate the rhythms of life.

The rhythms of life which seemed so foreign and new in the first few days, after watching the world slowly wither and die, and after the cold void of Valhalla.

But that was fine. He’d enjoy them for a while yet.

 

* * *

 

When he returned to the house, Lightning was standing by the window in the alcove between their rooms, a slender silver device held to her ear. She spoke softly into it, but the emptiness of the house amplified her voice what seemed like tenfold.

“No, I don’t think Caius knows. … It’s –“ Caius let the door shut behind him and the resulting sound seemed to get her attention. There was a sharp breath, and then: “I gotta go. Mmhm. I’ll talk to you later, Serah.” She lowered the device and immediately turned on him. “Been there long?”

“No.” He took a step toward her, and then another. She stood her ground, staring up at him even when only an arm’s length separated them. Caius searched Lightning’s eyes for a moment, his own expression neutral even as he knew she was doing the same, though she assuredly found nothing; she never seemed to. Or at least, she never seemed to find what she was looking for. When he spoke, his voice was low and carried the tone of a threat. “Is there something I need to know about?”

“No,” was her calm answer, and she crossed her arms over her chest. Neither of them backed down, though, and after a moment’s pause, she continued with an edge of irritation: “Did you need something?”

He always needed something. “Nothing from you specifically,” he replied, although he’d be damned if he’d be the first to relent. His fingertips twitched a bit at his side and for a moment he considered reaching for his sword – except it wasn’t there; it was likely stuck in stone in Valhalla. It was so strange not to have it on his person at all; he kept forgetting. He tilted his head to the side a bit with a smirk. “But there is something I’d like to know.”

She hummed her reply, nudging him onward.

“How long must we play this game?”

“As long as it takes.”

“To what?”

“Complete our Focus.”

“Then you should make yourself busy, shouldn’t you, Lightning?” Standing around waiting was no way to get anything done. If Caius felt as strongly about the task Etro had given to them as she did, it probably would have been done by now if he weren’t chained to this damn house for whatever reason. Over and over, he kept returning, but he couldn’t pinpoint precisely why as of yet – it was as if a fog fell over him, forcing him to question his judgement (hah) whenever he thought to strike out on his own…

She hesitated, took a half-step toward the window. Caius placed his hands on his hips, keeping his gaze focused on her as she choked out a reply: “It requires both of us.”

“Can you say that with certainty?”

Silence. Not silence of concession, but of defiance. After a moment, Lightning straightened and nodded. “Yes.”

He blinked at her and turned away. “It does not explain why we’re _here_.” Of course, she didn’t need to explain why they were still there. It quickly became clear that they were there because of Caius complete lack of any interest in cooperating. Lightning knew from the very start that making any attempt to work with him would be infinitely close to impossible. She also seemed to realize that without trust, nothing would move forward; hence, her allowance of Caius to go about his day as he pleased as long as he didn’t cause any trouble.

As such, she didn’t explain herself, instead turning to the window as he disappeared into his room with a huff, apparently no longer finding their brief confrontation no longer fulfilling in any way.

There wasn’t really much of anything inside save for the mat he slept on and a pillow, both in the center of everything. In fact, those were the only things inside save for an empty box inverted and used as a table of sorts, with a change of clothes (a black shirt with sleeves that just barely didn’t cover his elbows and khaki cargo pants he thought were tacky but had enough pockets to override aesthetic with practicality) Lightning had requested for him sitting on top. They hadn’t been touched much since they settled in, with Caius using them occasionally as pajamas or a change of clothes when he wouldn’t be going out for a while yet. There were also some interesting things he’d picked up – interestingly colored rock, a rock that was smooth and looked to maybe be made of quartz, and a flat, smooth, perfectly square stone, for example – and a flower in a glass on the windowsill (Lightning wasn’t too happy about his use of one of the only four glasses they were given being used as a vase but in the end there was little she could do about it; at the time Caius did it mostly because he knew it’d get under her skin but now he mainly kept the glass and occasionally brought home a new flower because it brought him a strange sort of comfort). That was it.

He’d only gotten precious few moments to himself before the door squeaked and opened a bit. He cast a glance over his shoulder and there Lightning was, arms crossed. “Caius.”

“Do you need something?”

“No.” A thoughtful pause. “Your sword was left in Valhalla.”

“Yes. Why?”

“I doubt we won’t need to fight when it comes time to address this.” She brought a hand to her chest, just above her brand. Caius narrowed his eyes a bit at her, and that was when she decided to cut straight to the point—“I have spare gunblades.”

He quirked an eyebrow. Caius would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested in having a weapon, but after centuries of using a greatsword almost as big as he was and made mostly of solid metal, he wasn’t sure that he could adjust. Still, a smirk crept to his lips and he hummed thoughtfully. “I assume you expect me to cooperate if you allow me to use one.” What was the term, _quid pro quo_?

“Yes.”

He considered this for a moment then shrugged. “How many do you have?”

“Three, excluding mine.”

“May I choose which one I use?”

“Yes. How many questions are you planning on asking?”

“That’s all. Bring them here.”

Lightning studied him carefully before disappearing to fetch the weapons. Caius took a seat on the mat he slept on, criss-crossing his legs and waiting patiently for her to return. When she did, they were all nestled in her arms and she carefully, one by one, laid them before him. They were all collapsed into themselves for easier transportation and it was clear at that point that the Guardian would have his work cut out for him regardless of which one he chose. He hummed a bit and picked up the one on the far right.

“Cocoon’s weapons are so light.”

“Your weapon of choice is a slab of metal with sharp edges.”

He grunted in response.

The blade unfolded easier than he’d anticipated, everything locking into place with a flick of the wrist. If nothing else it was showy, but the blade didn’t look particularly sturdy. It didn’t look like something even Lightning would use, with it being a far cry from the gunblade she’d pointed at his throat when they’d arrived or the blade she used in Valhalla. He spend a few moments toying with it, shifting it between its forms before setting it down and moving to the one in the middle. It had a thicker, slightly heavier blade and looked far deadlier, but was still light.

If presented with these weapons before he’d faced Lightning in Valhalla, he likely would have raised an eyebrow. However, all the reassurance in their effectiveness he needed was sitting directly across from him, patiently watching and waiting. Lightning could hold her own against him with blades like these, so even if they didn’t feel like they could do much damage, in the right hands…

“Only the most skilled Guardian Corps soldiers were allowed to use these, you know.”

“Is that supposed to impress me?”

“No. Just trivia.” She flashed him a wry smile.

He set the gunblade he was toying with down and his hands guided themselves to the one on the far left. He smiled a bit, weighing it in his hands. It was noticeably heavier, with a blade shaped similarly to the previous one. There were letters that Caius couldn’t read etched into the side, and he cocked his head to the side, squinting at them as if that would help him unlock their mysteries. “This is…?”

“Organyx. Military prototype and impulse-buy. Planned on scrapping it for parts.” She never got around to that, for some pretty obvious reasons. Hard to dictate what happened to old weapons when you’re trapped in Valhalla.

“Is there something wrong with it?”

“It’s too heavy. Have you made your choice, Ballad?”

He was about to quip about how _this_ gunblade was nothing _close_ to heavy, but held his tongue. “Yes. I’ll take this one.”

“Good.” She retrieved the other two, holding one in each hand as she stood. “I don’t have any rounds for you, but I’m sure that won’t be an issue.”

He gave a stiff nod. No, it wouldn’t be an issue; he had no interest in using it as a firearm. In fact, he wasn’t sure he quite understood Cocoonites’ obsession with guns in the first place. As she left the room, he toyed with it, quickly figuring out the exact amount of force he needed to open it. It felt good in his hands, but it was no greatsword – still, it was better than nothing, and in the way of utility it was certainly more versatile.

So he’d deal with it for the moment.


	3. Focus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second-shortest chapter thus far but I still :^).

The days progressed slowly from there and Caius spent his time out of the house getting used to his new toy. He jammed it once, two days after receiving it, and Lightning had to fix it – or rather, take it to Maqui to be fixed. She’d resisted the urge to scold him back then, because he couldn’t just rely on brute force with something like this. By the middle of the third week, he understood the best way to put the Organyx to use and at the end of their third week they had small portions of gorgonopsid meat in the freezer. A vast majority of the meat had been unusable after Caius proved that he was not cut out to be a butcher (he was _barely_ a hunter…), but the meat that _was_ good was _really good_ , as far as taste went. Not really in appearance but meat was meat was meat. Lightning pan fried some up for dinner one night and found that it tasted basically the same as, though a little gamier than, silver lobo. Caius gave her a dirty look at the time for whatever reason.

She still spent much of her time down in town proper whenever Caius wasn’t home. It was nice to see everyone again, and in this battle of attrition she could use all the moral support she could get.

The NORA gang (sans Snow) and Serah were all gathered toward the back of the house, laughing and chit-chatting. Lightning had joined them previously, but after there were no more snacks to peruse and the good jokes turned into unbelievably corny and unfunny jokes (which, admittedly, everyone laughed at anyway, but in an ironic sort of way) she kindly excused herself and stood on the outskirts of the group, merely becoming a spectator. Even after three years, they barely changed. Frankly, it brought a smile to her lips.

Larger conversations broke off into side conversations by the time Noel joined the fray, stumbling out of the guestroom fully dressed albeit with messy hair that he didn’t bother to smooth down for several moments. Lightning beckoned him over and he gladly filled the empty space to her left. “Hey,” he greeted, and she acknowledged it with a slight nod.

“Enjoying living with this bunch of loons?” She meant it in the most affectionate way possible, of course, but the fact that Noel wasn’t sure what to make of the usage of that term at first showed.

“Yeah, actually. It’s pretty nice here,” he replied thoughtfully. In that same moment, Maqui had either been elbowed off the couch by Serah or pulled onto the floor by Yuj. “… Never a dull moment.”

“There sure isn’t.”

“Judging by the amount of time you spend down here, there must be plenty of dull moments with Caius.” He wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, really; on one hand, it meant he was easy for her to manage. On the other hand, Caius could have been planning something, and with how difficult he was to read at times, none of them would know until it was too late.

“You could say that. We mostly avoid each other. He spends most of his time out.” Or, come nightfall, in his room sleeping.

“Yeah, I know. I saw him out by the Time Gate the other day.” This came as a surprise to Lightning, and it must have shown on her face because Noel gestured for her to relax. “The gate is sealed. I tried it, and it wouldn’t even take me to the Historia Crux. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about for the moment.” He paused, trying to think of more reassurance for Lightning’s nerves. Caius had tried to end time and kill the goddess Lightning swore herself to protect; and with what she’d told Noel about her (and Caius’s) Focus, nothing would get done if they were constantly at each other’s throats. “He kept hesitating when reaching out to touch it, though, as if he wasn’t sure if he wanted to go. Actually, I’m not sure he _can_ go.”

She sighed a bit in relief at that, letting one hand rest over her heart. “Good, then.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about it.”

“I won’t.”

 

* * *

 

When she got home, the house smelled of the gorgonopsid meat and Caius stood by the counter that they kind of just agreed was as good of a table as they were going to get. He finally donned the change of clothes on the box in his room and the beads and feathers were conspicuously missing from his (dripping wet) hair, although he kept the headband.

“Caius, we need to talk.”

His reply was an indifferent nod. He didn’t even take his eyes away from the plate on the counter, half cleaned by now but obviously the meal had consisted of the last portion of meat and a few of the baby carrots _she’d_ been saving _for herself_ (she had to actually hide her annoyance). He set down his silverware on the plate after she called his name again, this time with an edge of annoyance, and it became clear that she wasn’t just going to go away because he didn’t feel like dealing with her at the moment (couldn’t a man have lunch without being interrupted?). “About your Focus?”

“ _Our_ Focus.” Etro had branded _both of them._ “And yes.”

“May I finish eating?”

“ _Can you multitask?_ ”

“Yes, but I prefer to maintain good table manners.”

She huffed and conceded at that, taking a seat against her wall (well, technically the bathroom was on the other side of that wall, but it was on her side of the house) in the alcove. It wasn’t long before Caius joined her, and it was only really in the moment that he took a seat across from her that she realized how _disgustingly tall_ he was. He easily had around half a foot over her, maybe a bit more. They never really got this close before, not outside of battle, and she took a moment to absorb the little details – the way his eyes caught the light, how the sunlight brought out the subtler, lighter tones in his violet hair. He was conventionally good-looking even by Cocoon’s standards.

She could feel his gaze roaming over her as well, although she could only speculate on what he found the most interesting. His lips were quirked a bit in a smirk all the while. After a moment, they were finished, and they held each other’s gazes steadily.

Lightning broke the silence first – “Well. First thing’s first,” she began softly, testing the waters before clearing her throat and continuing, firmer: “Surely you’ve been all over Pulse. Have you ever seen the location in the vision?”

“I’ve been all over _this_ continent, yes, but my knowledge of what lies across the sea is somewhat limited,” he corrected, crossing his arms. Yeah fine, whatever. It was all semantics. “I’ve seen similar mountain ranges, though, north of Oerba. But not one with a door like the one we saw carved into it.”

“It’s a place to start looking.” There was something strange about that door anyway. “We definitely have to go there, but as for _her…_ ”

Caius pressed his lips together. “Yeul.”

“Yeah. There was just this image of her standing in front of the door, enveloped in some sort of dark… _mist_ …” Chaos? It wasn’t dissimilar in appearance to what enveloped Caius when he transformed into Chaos Bahamut. “Toward the beginning it was almost like she was made out of it. And after a few moments, she turned away and just vanished.” And then came the static – blur incomprehensible images that she was only just starting to sort out herself. The glimpses had been so fast, so brief that she wasn’t sure that she was meant to see them, honestly. Trying to recall them made her head hurt.

“That’s not what I saw.”

“Huh?” Lightning’s eyebrows shot up.

“The door is right. But my Yeul was solid, and real. She opened the door and beckoned me to follow before disappearing into the doorway.” He folded his hands in his lap and turned his gaze away briefly, eyebrows knitted.

Lightning chewed on her lower lip. Was there a reason for this inconsistency? Had Etro truly given them the _same_ Focus? Why was it so vague in the first place – why didn’t it tell them anything about what their end goal was? “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

She huffed a bit. How was she going to deal with _this_? Etro, please… “I guess we’ll just have to cross that bridge when we get to it. We have our first objective.”

Caius merely hummed, letting his head fall forward a bit. They sat there quietly for several long moments before he spoke again. “What do you plan to do once this Focus is complete?” He honestly doubted that the goddess had it in her to turn her precious champion to crystal to sleep for eternity. He doubted that the goddess had it in her to turn _him_ to crystal, even in light of his decided disdain for her very _existence_. She regarded his question with silence, and he continued: “Do you plan to remain here? Or will you return to Valhalla?”

“That doesn’t matter at the moment.” And it was none of his business. She hoped she would be allowed to remain. She wouldn’t be surprised if she had to bid farewell to Serah and the others once more. But one thing at a time. “Let’s get _this_ done first.”

It was his turn to huff, but he did so with a contented smirk.


	4. Before the Storm

Late the next morning, Caius killed another gorgonopsid and spent some time on the cliffs dealing with the carcass; more meat came out of it that time, and he was rather pleased with himself after the fact even though everything considered that didn’t really mean a whole lot. He dragged the unusable remains back into the brush and left it for the scavengers before gathering his things and heading back. He was slowly getting used to the gunblade, its weight becoming less and less of an issue the more he used it. He had to adjust his stance to accommodate for the smaller size of the weapon, which was a pain – but that was about it apart from the fact that its joints occasionally let out a low whine from the force of his swings.

Lightning was nowhere to be seen when he returned with the meat and he figured she must have been in town. Which was, of course, all the better for him; he needed time to wash off the blood. Setting half of the meat in the freezer and half in the bottom drawer of the refrigerator alongside processed and packaged meat products that didn’t even look like meat to him before turning to the sink, he took some time to wipe down his armor with a damp paper towel. It took a few towels before the blood was completely gone, and after his armor was tended to, he wiped down the blade, being careful to mind the joints and making sure to wipe it dry afterwards before collapsing it again.

(It would have been a little shameful to admit that he was still enamored with how fluidly it could shift between forms; when he wasn’t actively using it and had a moment alone, he’d toy with it – just shift it between its forms and watch it move. It wasn’t nearly as _artful_ in his hands as it was in Lightning’s, but it was at the very least entertaining.)

He cast a glance to the empty alcove and let his gaze travel over the living room and it struck him as sort of incredible that even after nearly a month, they made do with the absolute minimum in the way of furnishings. Well, no, that wasn’t quite right – they could be living as vagabonds – but close enough. He didn’t mind, of course; the last time he’d had anything of any real value had been before Paddra fell. He was used to skirting by on the bare minimum – even for all his strength it wasn’t practical to lug around too many things in his and Yeul’s travels.

He wandered a bit in the empty space before going into his room and closing the door behind him. The gunblade came to rest beside the box he used as a table before he went through the painstaking process of removing all of his armor (as well as the webbing underneath) and setting it aside, leaving him only in the light garments that mostly just served to keep the armor from sticking to his skin in ways that would assuredly be uncomfortable in various places. The undershirt was removed in short order as well before he laid down on his mat and, after a few moments of scanning the ceiling and listening for _anything_ , let his eyes slip closed.

Caius had no real intention of sleeping, merely wishing to have some time for his thoughts and to enjoy the sun’s warmth filtering in through the window on his skin. He stretched until a pleasant ache began to spread through his muscles before letting his head fall back on his pillow (or an object that attempted to pass as a pillow, anyway). His breath left him with a soft _huff_.

For the first time in centuries, things were no longer _certain_. He wasn’t sure he liked the feeling; something surely changed when he and Lightning were sent back with this mission, whatever it really was (fal’Cie, dieties, they were all the same in the end – at least insofar as they all seemed to have trouble giving clear objectives to their servants). His personal objectives didn’t change, of course – Yeul would always be the center of his universe – but there was still the very real possibility that his interests fell in line with this Focus… Unless he could decipher the static, there was no way of knowing for sure. And he hated that, absolutely hated it. Finding out would be a simpler matter if he was free to do what he pleased. For the moment, all he could do was speculate – and take things one step at a time. Caius tried desperately not to let it get to him, but the nagging at the back of his mind – the knowledge that Yeul was out there and he wasn’t by her side, most prominently – filled his mouth with a bitter taste and burned his chest.

He found himself starting to doze off after a few moments and jerked awake, shifting onto his side with a grunt.

Yeul was out there and here he was falling asleep. Here he was tied down with a leash while Lightning and Etro tried to get him to roll over (or something equally stupid). At the very least he had a weapon – which he supposed was a pretty good deal; Lightning didn’t have to give him one. But that was just about the only silver lining; what use was a weapon with no will to raise it to the throat of the true enemy – and at the thought, a sharp sort of pain lanced through the center of his forehead, as if to punish him for even considering the prospect of killing Lightning and _just being done with it, god **damn**_ , and he pressed two fingers to each temple and squeezed his eyes shut even tighter as a fog fell over all his senses. The pain subsided gradually and he briefly opened his eyes to bring the world back into focus. This was getting ridiculous.

But there was nothing he could do but wait it out.

… … …

 

* * *

 

When he awoke, his pillow was a little bit damp. He flipped it over and rolled onto his back before pulling himself unto an upright position, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. It was long past noon and Noel and Serah were sitting with Lightning in the alcove. They didn’t seem to be talking about anything important when he stepped out into the main area of the house wearing the khaki cargo pants and not really anything else, but they still paused to cast glances in his direction, which he gladly ignored in favor of raiding the fridge. There was a container with fruit slices in it that hadn’t been there this morning and, given the ease of replacement, Caius decided on those for a snack even as Lightning stared him down.

“I was saving that.”

An indifferent shrug. The slices were small enough that he could more or less pull all the flesh from the skin in one bite. His better angels told him to save some for Lightning since it’d been hers, but he wound up finishing all five of the slices simply because she felt the need to say something in the first place. He wiped his face with a paper towel afterwards, dumped the skin in the trashcan to the left, and set the container in the sink to the right. “Really. That’s too bad.”

He turned to the alcove just in time to see Serah and Noel exchange a look, then glance at Lightning with soft, cautious smiles gracing their lips. When he returned to his room, the talking resumed – and he left his door open just a crack so that their voices could filter in. They spoke of Cocoon and of NORA and of Serah and Noel’s journey through time, but nothing that was ultimately of any consequence to him personally at this point, whether out of caution or of consideration. There was certainly a secret being kept amongst them, and it definitely had something to do with _him_ if the conversation Lightning had had on the phone a week ago was anything to go by. He’d like to say he wasn’t curious. He’d like to believe it wasn’t anything important. But given how the three of them had, in their own ways, proven to be thorns in his side before, it wasn’t something that he could just ignore.

But he doubted he was going to get it out of Lightning, or any of them for that matter.

… His flower could use some fresh water. He’d take care of it later.

 

* * *

 

After a little bit, Caius made himself scarce. His departure, Organyx in hand, was unannounced save for the sound of his footsteps on the hardwood floor and the door closing behind him. Lightning, Serah, and Noel watched him go.

“You let him have a gunblade?” Serah pressed, the worry apparent in her eyes. Lightning’s reply came as a shrug.

“He’s not that skilled with it. And if that’s what it takes to get him to cooperate, then he can have it.” She was fairly confident in her ability to disarm him if need be; even when she faced him with that massive greatsword of his, she managed to get it out of his hands a few times.

Serah’s brow remained raised a bit in concern. “And you’re certain he won’t run off? He has no reason to want to be here. What if he goes after the goddess again, while you’re here? What if he comes after _you_?”

“He doesn’t seem to be planning anything. But even if he were, we’re equally matched on the battlefield.” Lightning let her hands rest on her knees, fingers knitting together. She cast her gaze to Noel. “And _you_ told me not to worry about him leaving. The gates are closed, right?”

“Yeah,” Noel replied with a nod. “He certainly doesn’t _seem_ to want to leave.” Or, if he did, something was holding him back.

Serah let out a sigh and backed down. “I don’t know. I just don’t trust him. And the more time you waste getting him to cooperate – hey, why don’t you let us watch him while you complete your Focus and set things right? Noel and I’ve beaten him in battle before.”

“My time’s not limited,” Lightning replied with a shrug, quickly deciding against bringing up the discrepancies in what they’d seen before being plunked in this time period as servants of the goddess. Caius already expressed a belief that even if they strayed, they would not become Cie’th. Lightning would never say it out loud, but she agreed; Etro loved her ‘ _little things_ ’. She didn’t seem to understand them very well, but she meant well enough. Not only that, but at the very least her brand hadn’t changed a bit. “And I’d really prefer to keep watch over him myself. I don’t doubt your competence, but Caius is…” _Unspeakably dangerous._

Serah paused, considering it for a moment. “Yeah. You’re right,” she conceded, although she didn’t look particularly happy to.

 

* * *

 

 

Sunset fell over the town before Caius returned, and when he stepped into the house, Serah and Noel were gone and Lightning had already gotten into the gorgonopsid meat he’d brought home that morning. The smaller bits easily portioned off from the larger wholes made for good personal meals, although he found the fact that she seemed to cook it the same way every time to be just _a shame_. In all his centuries, he could probably name at least a thousand and one different ways to cook it, and pan frying (which he’d tried only recently, really) was his least favorite thus far. He preferred it over a fire, but it was honestly not worth the trouble in this scenario.

He’d brought home some of the fruit he had made breakfasts out of for the past month. Organyx was tucked between of the many, many belts that held his armor together around his waist, almost like a traditional sword would be. Caius set the fruit on the counter and gave Lightning a sidelong glare as a warning to leave them be, and she acknowledge him with a grunt. Given everything, he didn’t actually expect to find both of the vibrantly-colored, thick-skinned fruits intact on the counter later. And he would not too terribly be bitter about it (there was plenty out there, after all), truth be told, even if it would be nice to receive the sort of courtesy from her that he did not really spare _for_ her.

Caius crossed the room to the alcove and gazed out the window to the wilderness beyond. The stars would not be coming out for some time yet – if they’d even be visible tonight. Dark clouds were beginning to roll in over the horizon, so maybe they would be getting some much-needed rain. In the sort of position he was in, he could only hope that the Yeul of this era was somewhere safe. She was a bit tougher than she looked, he supposed, and she could fit easily into little hiding places. She knew how to avoid monsters, how to find food. But, still…

His expression hardened as he thought of her and he cast his gaze downward. If Lightning picked up on it, she said nothing. Instead, it was Caius who broke the silence. “Lightning.”

“Hm?” Her mouth was full but she responded anyway. When the violet-haired man turned to face her, she’d paused in enjoying her meal, her fork with some of the meat on its prongs just at her lips.

“I wish to find Yeul before we do anything else.”

“Sounds fair.” She had some sort of role in this, after all – and then, even if she didn’t, with how focused Caius was on the seeress and her wellbeing, it would probably have been the end-all, be-all _key_ to his continued cooperation anyway.

Beyond that short exchange, their evening passed in silence. Once Lightning finished eating, she retreated to her room, and Caius into the bathroom. Every evening, he always cursed the showerhead for being too low, and toward the beginning he tried to substitute for a bath only to find that that wasn’t much better – _curse his height; why was he even surprised_ – and eventually he’d just decided to kneel. Lightning, apparently sympathetic to his plight despite the fact that such issues were his and his alone given that she was of a pretty average height and he was _very tall_ , apparently invested in a stool for him to sit on in the shower, presumably in exchange for the gorgonopsid meat he brought home for their meals. Like a child, he refused to use it at first, but after a while he found that it was the best option.

The room slowly filled with steam from the shower as he let the water scald his skin. His feathers were tucked away safe in his room, but the beads that adorned his hair were too much of a hassle to mess with unless he was washing it (he wasn’t sure he liked the chemicals that Cocoonites used, but when all you have is a hammer…), so they remained, resting against his shoulders until he moved them in his quest to scrub himself completely clean for the night. Past the first night, there was barely anything to be cleaned, of course, with what surprisingly little grime from his travels and from Valhalla coming away with even just water and the roughened palms of his hands. But since he had the luxury, he wasn’t about to let it go to waste.

Mostly, he used the time to sort out his thoughts, not that he didn’t have more than enough time to do that already (and not that he hadn’t already attempted to do that earlier in the day). But there were distractions, then: there were the usual sounds of nature outdoors and he usually kept himself moving and busy mapping out the sights or fighting monsters or practicing with Organyx or enjoying fruit; in his room there was the promise of imminent sleep and after long days he was often lost to oblivion the instant his head hit the pillow, with the next waking moment he was aware of being the moment that sunlight began to filter in through his window. In the shower there was little to distract him save the task of making himself clean, and other than that there was just the soothing warmth of the water (or, well, scalding heat, but after a while even that felt good) and steam holding him in a pleasant embrace.

Lightning had gone to bed relatively early that night; it was usually him who turned in first. He could feel the fog lifting, and it struck him as a bit curious; there wasn’t anything whispering for him to stay when he thought of leaving, anything to punish him when he thought of just _ending this_. As an experiment, he even drew out his eidolith, the deep violet, roughly spherical crystal filling the palm of his hand easily. He traced a finger over its surface, following the design embedded in its core, although even after a moment of intense concentration the crystal did not glow with the same light that filled his chest and ignited behind his eyes. He let the light fade away beneath his skin when it started to hurt; if the crystal containing Bahamut was unresponsive and dead, then that was fine. It surely wouldn’t be like that forever.

He turned the crystal eye over in his hands a few times before he brought it back up to his brand and, despite its size, it sank back into his neck with little resistance.

Clearly, Caius had gotten really good at ignoring his better angels.

Even with the thrill the thought sent through his blood, he took his time as always in the shower, not getting out until the water started to turn cold. He patted himself dry with the only set of towels they had – they’d be dry by the time Lightning took her shower in the morning – they always were – before he took one and wrapped it around his waist and made his way to his room to get dressed. His hands began to reach for the black shirt and cargo pants, worn already that day but still clean to sleep in, before he wavered and slipped into his armor instead. Footsteps swift and silent, he returned the towel to the bathroom before he laid down on the mat and waited for the last of the sky’s light to fade away.

 

* * *

 

Maybe he’d fallen asleep for a little while, but all the better; the night could not have been blacker. The entire house was bathed in darkness when he slipped out of his room, Organyx in one hand and the other extended a bit in front of him to guide his way.

Halfway to the front door, he paused before turning his gaze to Lightning’s room. The door was open just a crack, and he assumed that was how it usually was at night. He never god up in the middle of the night, so there wasn’t any real way to verify that, for better or for worse, but the house was, for the most part, silent and devoid of any signs that she’d still be awake. Right hand tightening around the grip of his sword until his knuckles just about turned white, he turned and slipped inside. Her door did not creak like his did, and he paused for a moment when she stirred and rolled over onto her back. The rose-haired woman was sprawled out on the mattress in a loose-fitting nightgown, head dropped to one side and mouth slightly open. The soft rise and fall of her chest spoke of a deep slumber, and it almost hurt him to level the blade between her breasts. For the moment she was none the wiser. Just… peaceful.

So… shall he give her this peace for the rest of eternity?

So many times, they had clashed in battle. So many times, they’d struck each other down – but in Valhalla, the realm of the dead and eidolons where time did not flow, nothing was final for either he, the bearer of the Heart of Chaos, or she, the goddess’s champion. They were equals in most regards except the fact that she was painfully mortal without the goddess’s blessing to shield her or guide her blade or shield to block his blows just in time or to, after their clashes came to a close, accelerate the healing process.

It would be a shame to off such a worthy opponent, but...

This was the opening he was going to take.

He moved his blade to the side a bit then sank it into her chest, and her eyes snapped open for a moment as he forced the blade through bone and organs, piercing her heart. She let out some sort of horrible noise when it pierced her heart and she gasped for air before she convulsed once, bringing her hands up before the light in her eyes was replaced with the cold glaze of death and she fell limp. Her chest no longer rose or fell, and once she was dead he practically sprinted out of the house. No need to look back. He couldn’t keep a wicked smile from gracing his features.

Etro thought she could brand him and call it done. She thought she could make him her little play thing. But unlike Lightning, he wasn’t content to obey or protect; no, he sought only to destroy. And for Yeul’s sake, that was exactly what he would do. He would destroy the very foundation of history if it meant that she could _live_ , freed from her curse and able to lead a normal life.

And now, no one stood in his way.


	5. Wings of Night

He was _free_.

He could have been running for hours. Maybe he was. He _probably_ wasn’t; with the speed at which his legs could carry him and his superhuman stamina, he could travel farther and faster than most could – and he could certainly travel longer, but hours was likely a gross overestimation. But when he finally came to a stop, New Bodhum was but a dark blob on the horizon, and in the dead of night the only light came from the various bioluminescent plants and insects of Gran Pulse. In the shadows, packs of monsters hunted their prey – heavy footsteps and faint growls grew to a brief crescendo before dying away, their prey apparently haven either fallen or fled. Caius’s breath came in heavy pants and his lungs and heart protested against their prior treatment and he bared his teeth in a grin. Everything was fine; things were back on track. With the gates unfortunately unresponsive, he had to take the long way around to Valhalla, but he’d already waited centuries. What were a few more? Right?

(He dreaded the thought, but for Yeul’s sake he would endure—)

Even then, Cocoon’s fall came first, and surely Etro’s Gate could be forced open that way. If that endeavor proved unsuccessful for whatever reason, Noel’s eventual birth a few centuries later would mark a chance to remold him into a man capable of killing him and ending Etro anyway. And then, if that, too, failed, when he could punch through to Valhalla, there would be no one standing in his way save easily dealt-with eidolons as he made his way to Etro’s throne.

His victory was assured.

Lightning was **dead**. A sorrowful loss, and one that likely would not go unnoticed by Serah and Noel after she failed to show up in town in the morning – although by then, he would be long gone. The empty house would reek of death by the morning hours. He couldn’t say he was happy that she was now little more than a corpse (one who could rival him in battle was exceedingly rare, even before he’d received the Heart of Chaos), but that was just how the dice fell. Certainly, they were not in her favor.

He continued on to a clearing and examined the blade of Organyx, Lightning’s blood streaked on the metal. It would be a shame to clean it off later, and maybe he just wouldn’t and he’d abandon the gunblade somewhere; a new weapon couldn’t be difficult to come by now that the fog was lifted and he could roam as he pleased, act as he pleased. He could seek out the Yeul of this era ( _a Yeul who dreamed of travel_ ) and pull her into his arms and tell her new stories and answer new questions for her, feed her growing curiosities. He could relive his time with her, and all the Yeuls following until it was finally time to free them from this Hell.

(Part of him wasn’t actually looking forward to that; knowing now how each of them met their ends…)

He drew out his eidolith and examined it. It remained unresponsive, the polished, smooth surface of the crystal eye merely serving to act as a really crappy mirror in the dark, the dim light that usually settled in its core still absent. Somewhere in the distance, heavy footfalls that drew ever closer could be heard over the sound of the wind through the trees if he concentrated – and the Guardian paused for a moment when he noticed that that sound coming toward him was not, in fact, any monsters hunting their prey under the cover of night, but—

“ _Caius Ballad!”_

He turned in time to spot a white-clad figure charging at him on horseback, eyes widening as he raised his sword in an effort to block the inevitable blow. It was successful the first time but then the horse they were riding turned and struck once more before the Guardian could turn on his heel and deflect it with the Organyx. Caius was swept off of his feet in short order, landing on his back. The crystal eye flew out of his hand and landed in the grass somewhere in the shadows of the trees beyond with a dull thud.

“What the—?!” The words escaped his lips in a gasp he scrambled backwards. He’d—He’d stabbed Lightning in the heart. She no longer drew breath when he left. Her blood streaked the blade of the gunblade she’d given him in a gesture of (misplaced) good will and confidence.

Lightning’s gaze levelled on him. Even in the darkness he could make out some details of her face and could tell that she’d gotten dressed, at least, her Guardian Corps military uniform replacing a ruined nightgown. A familiar red glow shone through her skin and clothes, centered in her right chest cavity, and he squared his shoulders as he stood, his eyes widened a bit (ever so briefly, before he narrowed his eyes in a scowl) and lips pulled back in a slight sneer when the realization hit him.

“Insurance,” she answered (confirmed) simply, dismissing Odin after hopping off his back and drawing her own gunblade. “To protect the goddess even in the event of _your_ death.”

He gritted his teeth and raised his blade at her. Would he truly have not noticed if part of the Heart of Chaos was ripped out of his chest? “I’ll kill you _as many times as it takes_ , then!” He lunged, and she dodged, predicting perfectly. Once more he went for her, and once more she ducked out of the way; monsters in all their might were nothing compared to a human foe whom, rather than simply being focused on driving intruders out of their territory or securing their next meal, could process things on the same level as he. Even worse, they proved time and time again that they were an enemy that could understand how the other fought – act first, think later. _Clear your mind, and move on instinct. Lose yourself in battle, and rejoice._

It wasn’t long before they locked blades. Their difference in strength (in which Caius certainly had the advantage) was made up for in skill (in which Lightning claimed her fame) – and they carved out a personal Valhalla in that clearing – they would fight for eternity there, under the dark sky in the shadows of the clearing. Fury burned behind both his eyes and hers, albeit perhaps for different reasons. Lightning lunged and set Caius on the defensive, the sharp edge of her blade biting into the skin of his fingers and the leather of his glove when he caught it and stopped it dead in its tracks, and leaving trails of red to drip onto the grass when she snatched it away and cut the skin and leather open. In short order, he forced her to leap back when he went for her throat – and he missed only by a narrow margin. When she landed several feet away, she had to take a moment to regain her bearings in the dark; Caius seized the moment and dug his heel into the ground, sending a flash of red-violet energy toward his adversary, tearing her off her feet once more. He leapt at her, and she rolled away, letting the Organyx’s blade pierce the ground where her head once had been.Caius righted himself easily, his eyes glowing bright red for a moment as he flipped over way too easily for still keeping the gunblade tight within his grasp.

She scrambled to her feet and let off a round of Ruin spells, the first five of which he deflected and the last of which hit him right in the center of his chest and left him winded for a few moments; Lightning saw the opening and took it and Caius let himself roll with it, the force of Lightning’s blow pushing him backwards, yes, but once everything was said and done their blades were locked once more. Caius took a step forward, forcing Lightning back a bit.

“At every turn, _someone_ stands in my way,” Caius began through clenched teeth, voice barely above a growl and his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits as he bore down on Lightning. The Organyx protested a bit at the treatment. “Be it _you_ in Valhalla, or Serah and Noel up and down the _damned_ _timeline_ , or Etro _herself_ in her desperate cling to life—“ Their blades separated for a fleeting moment, only to clash again right after with a loud _clack_ , and then the sound of metal scraping against metal as he pulled back and swung again blindly. “ _Give up!_ Your actions invite only the _suffering_ of a _child_ cursed to bear witness to the future and forced to carry on knowing she will die before she’s even had a chance to _live_!” So, what world must she be living in to find her actions _excusable_?! His voice pierced the night and each statement was punctuated by a new clash, either of metal or of magic. Although Caius swung with deadly force, Lightning lashed out more to annoy than anything – and needless to say, she was succeeding. She’d heard this lecture before – and somewhere deep down her heart ached for him but only out of pity because he’d allowed himself to fall to sorrow, to rage.

For her, such a fate was unthinkable.

Caius cursed at the burning sensation at the back of his neck, bringing one hand up to cover the spot although it did little. Even through armor and hair the red glow of it was visible – but he’d fought through worse before. The Guardian was dimly aware of the feeling and sound of his own heartbeat and he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before he let loose a round of graviton spells toward Lightning; she rolled out of the way of them before responding in kind with white pearls of light that stung more than anything else. He readied his sword and poised himself to lunge at her once more and—

The Guardian’s knees almost buckled and gave way when a flare of pain licked up his spine and the burning sensation began to spread down to his shoulders and his right hand tightened on the Organyx until his knuckles were white – another forced his pulse into his fingertips and made his neck arch until his gaze was to the sky rather than fixed on Lightning, teeth gritted and breath drawn in shaky, quick hisses.

Lightning hesitated and then cautiously approached, one hand drawn to her chest and ready to lash out if need be. A light – the beginnings of Bahamut’s summoning glyph flickered briefly at Caius’s feet before he willed it to dim and fade away. After a moment’s consideration, she extended a hand enveloped in a cool blue light that would do nothing to cure what ailed him now. It was more of an olive branch – but one he saw no need to accept, not from _her_. The light faded away after a moment when Caius swept at her once, forcing her backwards while he slowly pulled himself together, levelling his gaze on her once more and levelling his sword at her. His lips parted to allow words to slip past – words that were killed at the back of his throat and came out as a grunt instead when his knees actually did buckle and give way beneath him. When his eyes refocused, Lightning seemed ready to counter any impending attack and—

_‘The more you resist, the more it will hurt.’_

He wasn’t exactly sure why he’d recalled those words now, those words from centuries ago when he’d first been forced to call upon Bahamut for the first time. It’d been a relatively simple, painless procedure back then – he’d wanted it over with – but now was not the time for a trip down memory lane.

Caius forced himself to his feet once more and, though his body protested, finally lunged at Lightning. With a war cry torn straight out of Valhalla, he swung across and his blade connected with her side, cleaving through flesh and tossing her to the side. Lightning lay very still on the grass after she landed, hand covering the wound as she desperately cast what few healing spells she knew in an effort to seal it. Caius knelt several feet away with his bloody sword in one hand and the other clutched to the Heart, as if it would help keep his eidolon at bay – her eyes focused in on the reddish glow of it showing through his armor, through his fingers, behind his eyes. Anything to distract her from the pain screaming in her side as blood stained her clothes and she kept drawing power from her brand to knit it closed, but it felt like an eternity before she could even think about moving.

Caius shook his head in the darkness and mouthed the word _‘no’_ as he crumbled forward and squeezed his eyes shut. The glyph opened again and lingered longer this time and he knew he couldn’t keep Bahamut at bay forever – but the dragon answered to him and at this point it was more a matter of pride. But when he finally, finally let go, and the violet glyph opened at his knees and in the heavens above. His vision blurred – and somewhere in the darkness he must have screamed – he heard his voice, at least, but he didn’t really register doing it – and when the world snapped back into focus the pain was gone, replaced with _something else entirely_ and his Bahamut hovered before him, claws bared and wings spread wide as if to intimidate.

The Guardian stood, panting and pausing a moment to let himself come down from the high. The jet-black eidolon before him also seemed content to wait for him. Composure gathered, he assumed his battle stance and Bahamut swept at him with those massive claws in short order, forcing him to jump back. Caius brandished the Organyx in a challenge before poising it to block the impending blows – first a swipe with large claws, and then he was caught between them; he heard something in his body _crack_ and he felt the pain from it but a few frenzied Cure spells later and whatever it was had healed back into place.

He hit the ground hard and reassumed a defensive stance while the rose-haired woman, now more or less fully healed, jumped into the fray. The eidolon continued to focus his efforts on Caius.

Lightning unleashed several Thunder spells while Bahamut wailed on the violet-haired man at her side, who was mostly trying to just stay standing in the face of his eidolon’s might, using his sword as a shield but it was assuredly less effective than his old greatsword would have been in blocking blows. The instant Bahamut took a moment to rest, Caius’s attitude shifted and he unleashed a round of graviton spells at the beast, then a round of fireballs.

It responded in kind by unleashing a spell that set the ground at Caius’s feet alight. He grunted and raised his sword to defend before, more out of pity than anything else, Lightning sent a few Cure spells in his direction. The Guardian nodded in gratitude and waited just a moment – not too long – for the blue light his body was enveloped with to subside before carrying on his assault. It seemed that, for now at least, he’d accept her help – and for as long as he was willing to accept it, she was more than happy to give it.

It was strange, fighting alongside him instead of against him. Briefly, she recalled her battle against Odin – first, in The Vile Peaks, and then again in Valhalla, and how it had been almost like _dancing_. The recalled, too, aiding Fang against her version of Bahamut – smaller, more colorful, definitely less aggressive; while the pitch-black version before her now was more content to withstand Caius’s assault before unleashing devastating counter-attacks, whenever either of them left and opening or had to pause and catch their breath, being torn to shreds by vicious claws was a very real possibility. The way this Bahamut fought closely resembled his master – merciless, and striking hard and fast _every single time_. By the time he yelled at her to _“Get down now!”_ before Bahamut unleashed a burst of energy that damn near blinded her for how bright it was (and made her clench her teeth in how it seared her skin) her legs were riddled with cuts (most shallow, some deep and letting blood run down her legs). Other parts of her body had their share of wounds as well, but her legs definitely had the least defense, and a fair number of blows she managed to deflect away from her torso.

Once the light was gone, Lightning got up from where she had dove into the ground in time to meet Caius’s gaze as he did the same, and they fell into the familiar rhythm of battle once more. Lightning understood that this was his battle more than anything and more or less just provided support – healing when he needed it, and blows to stun Bahamut and provide Caius with an opening to exploit when he didn’t.

“Caius!”

He looked at her, eyes wide.

“Stay back!”

He obeyed a moment, before Lightning unleashed a huge bolt of electricity right where Bahamut hovered before them. Electricity hung in the air afterward, some stray tendrils leaping off the ground. Her namesake left the beast stunned for a long enough moment for Caius to unleash some spells that exploded in a ring of black runes and lavender light. It wasn’t long after that before Caius held out his hand to Bahamut, gesturing for it to give up – and the beast seemed to consider this before darting up into the dark sky where it very nearly blended in before returning in a more wyvern-esque form. It seemed to consider landing for a moment, and in that moment between it hovering in the air before them and its claws – now talons, technically – touching the ground, everything seemed to freeze.

But then its feet were firmly on the ground, and everything in the air sighed; Lightning fell to her knees and Caius slowly approached his eidolon, the Heart of Chaos glowing faintly in his chest as the beast bowed its head to its master, their bond renewed. They were both eerie quiet, though after Valhalla she knew that no sound need pass Caius’s lips to speak with Bahamut.

It could have been the darkness or the light of still-dying embers from the fire that the dragon had set or the light of the crackling electricity. But she thought she saw Caius smile, if only briefly, before Bahamut faded back into the ether, leaving a brightly glowing crystal eye in his hand, although before long even the light that settled in its core faded until the light that emanated from it was barely perceptible.

She instinctively raised her sword when he turned to her, any hint of gratitude gone from his eyes. Halfway to her, he paused and collapsed Organyx and she relaxed a little, but he could still certainly use magic. She wasn’t sure _what_ to brace for, but it became apparent as he came to a halt only a few feet before her that she need not brace for anything.

“You are hurt.”

“Wh—Well, _yeah_.” It wasn’t like eidolons were a walk in the park to fight, and in the flow of battle she healed only when absolutely necessary; time spent tending to wounds while the enemy was on the offensive was, usually, time wasted when there were other options available. The healing magic she could wield was pretty basic stuff anyway. A soft blue light began to form in her hands and she started to turn away, not a huge fan of the idea of him being so close. “Thanks for pointing out what I already know.”

Before she let the light envelop her body, though, Caius had rested one hand on her shoulder. The sudden contact made her squirm, especially considering all of the _destruction_ wrought by those same hands. Cool tendrils wound their way through her body and she swore that they were out to _consume_ her, and while she knew that the Heart of Chaos now worked to make _both_ of them immortal (it was difficult to get used to the thought and so she’d decided in short order to avoid thinking about it and just fight like her life depended on it anyway, should the need arise), she wasn’t sure how she’d come back from being frozen in place if that was truly his intention – and she jerked away before she realized that no ice had formed on her and she was still very much warm and alive and her wounds were beginning to knit themselves together.

Lightning couldn’t hide the look of shock that crossed her features.

“Regen,” he explained simply, continuing on past her.

Her shock kept her silent for several moments. Then she collapsed her sword and returned it to the sling that hung behind her. “I _can’t_ let you leave.” At least not when he pretty clearly still had it out for both her and the goddess she was sworn to protect. Not after he’d killed her in her sleep, certainly.

He just shrugged, eyes focused on something else, something distant. “Then I will return. Shall we take Odin or Bahamut?”

She blinked once, twice. He’d return?  After going through the trouble of coming this far? She swallowed and squared her shoulders and bringing one hand to her chest before giving him her answer – “Odin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (clenches fist) (clenches tighter) _nice._


	6. The Wake

They rode in silence, Odin’s steps swift and true. Lightning braced herself as best she could without reigns to hold onto, and casting a glance up to the pitch-dark sky she urged her eidolon to go _faster –_ a command which he readily followed through. The sooner they were home, the better. The sooner they were home, the sooner Caius could get his hands off of her – they’d come to rest on her hips and though he meant nothing by it – hell, he wouldn’t even look at her, eyes instead focused on some undetermined point above and ahead of them. Thunder rolled in the distance and she let out a sigh – _of course_ …

The first drops of rain had only just started to fall when they reached the house and dismounted. Caius cast one last glance to the horizon before following her inside and, after being pressed by Lightning, handed over the Organyx before heading to his room without another word. Their battle had for whatever reason made him strangely agreeable – and though Lightning questioned the reasoning behind it she couldn’t bring herself to complain, really. It certainly made her job easier, at least.

After making sure everything was locked tight and Caius had no means of escape, she took a quick shower and turned in as well, and was lost once more to a dreamless sleep. When she woke, the sky was still dark – though it was from the sun being blotted out by storm clouds rather than the sun being hidden beneath the horizon. Rain pattered against the window (and the house in general, really) in a near-constant stream; lightning flashed in the sky and the rumbling of the thunder once far away now sounded as if it were directly overhead. Wind alternately kicked up the rain, slamming it against the house and tousling the foliage outside, and died away leaving it to fall straight down as if this were just a little shower that would pass soon enough, and not a storm that’d likely been going on half the night plus the morning up to that point – and would likely continue into the afternoon or evening, depending on the sky’s particular mood.

She yawned and pulled herself to her feet. She’d crashed in regular clothes and slept on the floor since her blood had dripped onto the mattress when she rolled over after the Heart of Chaos revived her – and it hadn’t really crossed her mind to clean it off before she’d set off after Caius. Most of it had been soaked into her nightgown, which found its way into the wash, though – so her room didn’t quite reek of it, but she could still envision clearly the look in his eyes as he hovered over her, sinking the blade into her chest slowly, even though her glimpse of them had been brief before she was swallowed by the cold of death, thankfully not permanently…

Needless to say, she had suspended his weapon rights. Indefinitely. And much to her dismay it was on the verge of breaking – and she’d have to have Maqui look at it before she even started to think about letting Caius wield it again…

She stepped out into the living room and marveled at how quiet it was. Of course, she was usually the first one awake, so she was used to _that_ sort of quiet – but perhaps the storm further punctuated the precious silent instants between each raindrop colliding with the house, each roll of thunder overhead. Slowly, she made her way across the house and nudged Caius’s door open enough for her to peek inside; the door creaked on its hinges and she froze, but she got the glimpse she wanted (no, needed): Caius laying on his back, head turned toward the door and lips parted a bit. As far as she could tell, he wore only the simple, light, tight-fitting black garb that after roughly a month living under the same roof as he, she knew he wore underneath his armor – his blanket wasn’t so much over him as it was half-piled in a heap beside him and half cast over his knees. His chest rose and fell in time with his breathing and his hair was a complete mess and partially obscured his face as always, but from what she could discern he certainly looked peaceful; no hint of the anger that rested just below the surface when he was awake graced his features.

She liked him better this way, she decided.

Her curiosity satisfied, she slipped into the bathroom for her shower. It was only just long enough to get what she needed to done in the way of washing off, and before long she was dressed down in a loose-fitting white t-shirt and sweats. There was no way she was going to get out today – even if the rain let up, the ground would probably be muddy enough to suck her down and swallow her whole. Those who lived on the shore proper would probably be overjoyed when it stopped, though – the sand would, until it dried out completely but after enough moisture had left that it wasn’t like walking on literal quicksand, be packed down firmly enough that it _wouldn’t_ be a pain to walk in (although that was probably just the fact that, before being plunked down in New Bodhum, she hadn’t walked on the beach since shortly before The Purge; the actual residents didn’t seem to mind the sand all that much).

She opted to make breakfast out of half of one of the fruits that Caius had brought in the previous day; the other half was wrapped up and found its way into the fridge. She’d had the same fruit a few times before, but every time it never failed to please her senses and her stomach and amaze her enough each time that she swore it was her first. While probably not necessary given that the fruit was far from cumbersome to hold, she ate it out of the skin with a spoon after cutting it in half to avoid making a mess of herself with the juice. The seeds were set aside when she encountered them and dumped into the trash with the skin when she finished her meal.

 

* * *

 

He woke slowly from a dreamless sleep that left him feeling no less tired than he had when he’d retired.

Caius shifted onto his side with a groan, his hand falling on a bruise just above his hip. There was nothing he could do about it in regards to magic anymore; that only worked within a precious and strict window of time after the initial injury. He could only let his body heal itself now – and unfortunately, the Heart of Chaos would be offering no help, given that it hadn’t been enough to kill him. He laid there for a few moments, very still, his hair strewn about his pillow along with his decorative beads. It took him a moment to fully recall _all_ the events of the previous night, and the words of wisdom Bahamut had given him—

_‘If you trust Her to guide your path, then you shall be rewarded dearly.’_

What that reward would be, he figured he could wait and see. In the end, the words changed nothing – his goal was the same, although Yeul certainly had something to do with their Focus. So perhaps this was…

He laid there on his mat for a moment before he pulled himself up so at least he was sitting upright. Everything in his body protested at the movement, and he was tempted to lay down again – but for the moment he resisted the urge. He wouldn’t be getting out that morning, to say the least; the rain was simply coming down too hard for that. All the monsters save the terraquatics (which were just _annoying_ – disgusting and annoying) would have been holed up in their dens and there wasn’t much worth getting soaked for. Caius ran a hand through his hair before he opted to lay down once more, reaching for the blanket he’d discarded sometime during the night and pulling it over him. He couldn’t stretch out fully and still have it cover him completely, which was a shame, though not something he wasn’t used to dealing with.

Caius drifted in a weird spot between the clarity of wakefulness and the oblivion of sleep for most of the morning. He couldn’t remember what he thought about, or what he dreamed about, or much of anything, really – only that the rain went on and on and never stopped. Sure, it lightened up a little occasionally, but sunlight never filtered in through the window and the sound of rain against the house was very much constant.

Sometime later, his door creaked open. He stirred a bit, opening his eyes to look up at Lightning, whom was leaning against the door frame. “You never sleep in,” she commented, folding her arms across her chest.

It didn’t even strike him as _almost scarily nonchalant given the previous night’s events_ until sometime later, after he’d given his only reply of a somewhat incoherent mumble of _“So what,”_ and he’d pulled himself into an upright position shortly after. His entire body ached from the battle the night before, but the fog over his perception was still gone; he assumed it had something to do with Lightning, Etro’s ‘insurance’. No complaints there; he didn’t need any outside force dictating his actions.

“Just an observation. Had half of one of those fruits you brought home, by the way.” Her voice was cold as usual, and her entire body was rigid. But her eyes – at the very least her eyes weren’t of ice. She didn’t bother closing the door behind her as she disappeared around the corner into the alcove.

He huffed a bit and, attempting to keep movement to a minimum, reached out and just batted the door closed to give him some semblance of privacy while he got changed. The black shirt and cargo pants served him pretty well – although they were a bit loose, truth be told – and for the first time he considered seeing about getting more changes of clothes, but there wasn’t really any point when he wore his armor most of the time anyway – and his armor rarely needed to be washed on account of the material it was made out of. With proper clothes on, he wandered out of his room and cast a glance to Lightning, whom was watching the rain out of the window with _her_ eidolith in hand, a pink crystal rose

Caius didn’t bother to break the silence between them and instead went straight for the fruit. He mumbled some sort of comment – something like ‘ _why do you insist on cutting things in half_ ’, probably – before fishing a spoon out of the drawer as well and eating it that way. It was, of course, in no way less satisfying, but when comforts such as silverware and such were limited and neither of them was keen on doing dishes, why waste the time?

He polished off the half-fruit she’d left him as well as the untouched fruit still resting on the counter.

 

* * *

 

The day wound on, and so did the rain. In the absence of anything else to do and no way to get out, they pestered each other a bit – innocently, though, and no mention of the previous night’s events came up until a good while after noon. By that time, music had begun filling the space that the rain didn’t fill, thanks to a small device that Lightning had messed with for a bit before setting it down on the kitchen counter. None of the songs were ones Caius recognized, and the songs lacked readable names given the vast differences between the alphabets of Cocoon and Gran Pulse – but that was fine. It kept them mildly entertained for a while. He liked her taste, too – but he would never admit it.

But even if they were both content to sit in silence, they had more pressing concerns than keeping themselves (and possibly each other) entertained.

“You killed me last night,” Lightning began, as if it were just some off-handed casual thing. She stood in the kitchen making some sort of meal with the gorgonopsid meat and some other things that Caius didn’t really care for given their origin and how they most definitely were _not_ fresh and most definitely _were_ chock full of strange, unpronounceable ‘ingredients’. He couldn’t think of a single word in common vernacular that had _fifteen_ letters – and none that included _numbers within the word_. But it certainly smelled good…

In all, she seemed more interested in her food than his answer, which was simply: “Yes.”

“Because if you killed me here, you figured no one would stand in your way once you returned to Valhalla.”

His voice was firmer this time: “Yes.”

She seemed satisfied that she’d gleaned even that much from him – Caius, like her, did a wonderful job of hiding things he didn’t want known to the world at large under a façade of cool confidence. Maybe it contained a bit more than a hint of arrogance in his case as well, granted, but still. “What made you stay?”

The music filled the void he left when he did not answer immediately. The violet-haired man let his gaze wander to the wall just opposite of him, then to the window he was standing by in the alcove. His eyes briefly followed two raindrops as they raced each other to the bottom of the pane. When it became clear that he wasn’t planning on giving her a straight answer, she continued on, pressing him further: “You could have found Yeul by now, been long gone and on the other side of Cocoon’s pillar by now if you’d just flown off,” she pointed out, and quietly Caius started to wish he _had_ done that. She snorted softly, then added, just barely audible: “I would have chased you down, granted, but…”

“You’re right.”

“So why?”

“Because I want to see where this path will lead me.” He still planned on freeing Yeul from her curse. He still planned on finding the Yeul of this era, first and foremost; there wasn’t much he could do until the weather cleared up though. Even with all the centuries behind him and the power of chaos flowing through his veins, he didn’t much enjoy being battered by rain, wind, and lightning and in these conditions he’d likely get nowhere fast. If he did find Yeul – and he had a few locations in mind as to her whereabouts – then they wouldn’t be getting anywhere fast; shelter, food, water would be the priority, all of which he’d taught her to seek early on if ever there were a circumstance when she had to fend for herself for a little while. He’d rather not offer Yeul up to the lightning coiling and arcing within the clouds, either.

Lightning seemed momentarily satisfied by that answer and continued cooking. The songs playing in the background finished and changed no fewer than five times before she saw fit to speak again; she didn’t look at him directly, instead serving herself some of the food she’d prepared. “Do you want some?”

“What?”

“I know you’re not deaf, Caius.”

“I’m not. What is it?”

With an edge of irritation—“Yes or no.”

He snorted a bit. “Sure.”

At that, she pulled down another plate from the cupboard and placed some food on it, too, before bringing it over to Caius with some silverware. At least she was considerate enough to do that. He took the plate with a muttered thanks and slowly slid down the wall so that he was seated before examining what he’d been given. The meat had been shredded and browned and there were some of those frozen, too-brightly-colored mixed vegetables that, so far as he was concerned, were just taking up space in the freezer prior (given he hadn’t seen them at all in the fridge…), and over top of it was some orange-brown sauce that smelled strongly of various spices that Caius wasn’t sure he could name right off the bat. There was no way she prepared said sauce herself, given the presence of a similar sauce in a jar tucked away in one of the few cupboards that they actually stored food in. It was all sitting on a bed of (probably instant) too-bright white rice.

After deciding that it wasn’t going to poison or attack him, Caius decided to give it a try. It was hot – like, _really_ hot – but not so much so that the spiciness overrode everything else. It reminded him a little bit of home, except that the vegetables and rice were, for the most part, tasteless, so most of the flavor came from the meat and the sauce. He ate slowly and tried to take enough time to enjoy it, but he was _still_ finished eating before Lightning was. All told, he was pretty grateful for the food – but like hell he’d say that out loud. When Lightning looked up from her plate, nearly empty, he merely gave her a curt nod and rose from his place in the alcove to bring his plate to the sink.

“Do you plan on returning here after our Focus is complete?”

Lightning froze at the sudden query, her gaze darting briefly to Caius before returning to her food. “Probably.”

“You should probably see about a table, then.” And some chairs.

“One thing at a time. _You’re_ not going to stay here, are you?”

“Certainly not.” Depending on the outcome, Caius would likely be on the road again with Yeul. The message Lightning was trying to get across was clear, though; she’d see about getting some furnishings when she was good and ready to, and not a moment sooner.

This fact could not have prompted a single complaint from Caius if it tried.

 

* * *

 

The rain lasted well into the evening, but by the morning the sun was out once more. This also signaled the return of their routines, with Caius up with the sun and Lightning long before and both of them spending plenty of time out of the house. In the brief time they’d crossed paths in the morning, Caius expressed a desire to seek out Yeul – and Lightning regarded it with silence. As long as he came back in the first place, she had no issues with him searching for the seeress he was bound and sworn to protect and serve.

Down in New Bodhum, the sand was indeed packed tight, and closer to the shore it was riddled with holes where the crabs had a heyday the previous night burrowing down into the sand to both find food and avoid the eyes of curious passersby. The air smelled of rain and the sea and while both scents were nice on their own, Lightning couldn’t say she enjoyed the combination of them very much, with the end result smelling more like fish than anything else. Some of the town’s inhabitants chose this morning to sit on the tiny dock and cast out some lines hoping to hook a fish.

And the inhabitants of the NORA house just took this day to laze around. While it was Monday and thus back to work for Serah, most of the others were still around when they could get away with it. Maqui, Gadot, and Snow were notably absent – Maqui presumably in his workshop while Gadot and Snow were out helping keep the monsters away from the town proper.

Those remaining – Noel, Lebreau, and Yuj – were more than happy to keep Lightning company. The dark-haired woman made herself busy tidying up after what had been, without a doubt, a wonderful breakfast that Lightning sort of regretted being absent for, and poked her nose into the conversation whenever she could contribute. Yuj helped her with the kitchen and then set about preforming other housekeeping tasks.

All present paused for a solid minute when Lightning told them what happened with Caius two nights ago, their expressions briefly turning to ones of horror. “And you’re still staying with him?” Lebreau pressed, dropping the rag she was wiping the stove down with; Yuj, out on the deck, ceased mopping up the puddles of water. Noel’s expression gradually turned from one of horror to one of anger, and he nodded when Lebreau continued, leaning over the counter a bit: “He ought to be locked up! I mean, sure we don’t have a proper jail _here_ , but ship him off to one of the bigger cities. Or something!”

Lightning chewed on her lower lip a bit, fidgeting under their gazes for a moment. “Our Focus requires both of us. That’s all. For the moment, I can’t die permanently, either, so it’s a nonissue.”

“Like hell it is! What if he comes after the town? Weren’t Serah and Noel caught up in all this?” Lebreau had to fight to keep from raising her voice, but she was practically yelling as it was. “You don’t think he’s a threat to _their_ safety?”

Lightning blinked, her breath catching in her throat for a moment. Part of her wanted to deny what Lebreau had said, but… Caius was incredibly dangerous, and to have him so close to Serah and the others… Her expression hardened. “I’ll just have to keep him in check, then.”

“And how do you propose you do that, huh?” Lebreau quirked an eyebrow.

Noel crossed his arms and sat back a bit. His lips parted as if he wanted to speak, but refrained before Lightning pressed him: “If you have an idea, spit it out.”

He frowned a bit. “Well… We could use Yeul.” The idea of using a small child in an effort to keep him in check seemed to be physically painful for Noel to suggest. “He values her over everything else. Everything he’s tried to do so far has been to protect or save _her_. And – I don’t think he’d take many risks if there was a chance Yeul would actually get caught in the crossfire.”

“Right…” Lightning took the suggestion into consideration for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, that might work.” At least as a temporary solution. The gears were starting to turn – how could they create a situation where any action taken against the town would be detrimental to Yeul’s safety? It would probably be more difficult than she thought, but… It was worth trying, and even in the worst-case scenario, Serah could certainly handle herself in battle, as could Noel.

It would just be a matter of letting everything fall into place.

 

* * *

 

Clear skies and freedom from interference meant that Caius could seek out Yeul freely. Thankfully, within the frame of time they’d been dropped in, she couldn’t have wandered far from New Bodhum – no, actually, a nine-year-old child would probably be too frightened to wander too far away without her Guardian, even if over time she’d learned, and been taught, how to handle herself in their travels by watching him fend off monsters. Still, the sooner Yeul was out of harm’s way, the better.

He glided low enough to cast a shadow on the ground, but high enough to still make use of his improved eyesight as Chaos Bahamut; there were no traces of her presence where he did search, but that narrowed down the places for the next day’s search. He returned to the house shortly before sunset, landing and letting his true body fall from the cloud of shadows that dispersed into thin air once Bahamut was dismissed. He waited a few moments for Bahamut to fall quiet and the Heart of Chaos to stop glowing before he stepped inside, though once inside it was apparent that he need not have bothered; Lightning was absent. Upon seeing this, Caius let out the breath he wasn’t aware he was holding before heading to his room.

Much to his dismay, Lightning hadn’t seemed to return during the day because his box-table was void of the clothes he’d worn the previous day, so he had to wait if he was going to get changed completely. The least he could do, though, was strip off his armor, even if the scarce, tight-fitting clothing underneath only barely protected his modesty. Sure – no one was around and you had to be actively trying to get a peek, but he still felt a bit unnecessarily exposed. But that was just what he was going to have to deal with.

After changing his flower’s water (a new flower, naturally, that he’d collected this morning to replace the old one which had withered away; the new one was bright red and wasn’t dissimilar in appearance to the red flowers dotting the Yaschas Massif…), he set to work figuring out dinner. As long as he was staying in a proper house, after all, he may as well try and prepare actual meals rather than just curbing his hunger with little things here or there; unfortunately the only thing he could absolutely ascertain the identity of was the remaining gorgonopsid meat, which was frozen solid, and… Not much else, since he didn’t trust himself to identify the scarily minimalistic symbols and alien letters on the packaging. There was a clear container in the fridge with what appeared to be what little remained of the previous day’s lunch on it, but Lightning had taped a note that he couldn’t read to the top—

Caius had no idea what it said, but he figured that if Lightning cared enough about the food to leave a note that he ought to leave the contents of the container alone, even if it was his best bet on a well-rounded meal. Oh well; he was used to simpler stuff anyway, and he figured he should use that gorgonopsid meat at any rate, plain or not.

 

* * *

 

Lightning returned when the sun was about halfway over the horizon and the stars were beginning to come out – later than she usually returned, but Lebreau had cooked dinner and there was no way she could turn _that_ down. What could she say? The woman sure knew how to cook, and the seafood dish she prepared reminded her of the simpler days back in Bodhum on Cocoon. Days that were long gone now, thanks to the plot of Barthandelus and Orphan, and thanks to the chaos that had sucked her into Valhalla. Thanks to Etro, who gave her a new purpose.

But there was nothing that said that she couldn’t simply pick up where she left off once this Focus was complete.

The instant she stepped into the house, she was hit by the wonderful smell of cooking meat, and she was immediately thankful that she _had_ eaten before heading home, because Caius was cooking what looked to be the last of the gorgonopsid meat and like hell he’d be as gracious as she had the previous day with lunch. She took care to wipe her feet on the mat in the entryway and make sure they were devoid of any mud before she entered properly. She set Caius’s change of clothes on the counter as far away from the stove as she could put them and the Guardian gave her a nod of acknowledgement – and greeting.

Lightning cast her gaze to the bright red flower sitting near the sink in the same glass Caius had used since the beginning of that little habit’s development, tilting her head to the side. She didn’t question it, though; she never questioned it. But it was something to take her eyes off of the stark, defined lines of Caius’s body underneath his black clothing. “Any luck?”

He shrugged. “I know where she’s _not_.” And there were, after all, limited places she could be.

Pause. “Let me go with you tomorrow.” It was less of a request and more of a demand, in honesty – and she made perfectly sure that her tone conveyed that.

This gave Caius some pause before he cast his gaze to Lightning. And then back to the cooking meat for a moment before he turned the stove off and slid the meat and much of the juice that had escaped during the cooking process onto a waiting plate. “Alright.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can this week be over.
> 
> Meh, anyway, the story continues onward! A breather between Chapters V and VII. I say as this is easily the longest out of the three, probably.


	7. Hold and Release

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so late. i can explain. see, i finally took lr out of its celophane and started playing... and i ended up doing that all week instead of updating/writing! :^) no regrets honestly.

Their morning routine, for the most part, did not change. However, rather than a simple overlap of schedules, at a certain point they came to act on the exact same schedule Lightning got ready as usual, as did Caius, and Lightning had her breakfast while Caius did not eat before leaving with Lightning at his side, instead opting to pluck fruit off of some low-hanging branches on their way away from the house. Lightning carried Organyx for the moment, while Caius walked and ate, and it wasn’t until he was finished that he came to a halt in a small clearing near the cliffs facing away from the town. He held out his hand quietly and—Lightning hesitated, weighing the gunblade in her hands and weighing the pros and cons of each decision in her mind.

“Lightning,” he pressed, almost impatiently – and in response she practically shoved it at him.

“Fine then, let’s go,” she said, one hand on her hip and the other dropped to where her Blazefire Saber rested in its sling behind her just in case Caius got any bright ideas. But rather than turn on her as she would honestly not have put past him, he merely drew in a breath, drew out his eidolith, and transformed in a swirl of black smoke.

Lightning was forced to take a step back when the smoke kicked up, only approaching the spot where a human Caius had once stood when it had dispersed as if it had not even been there in the first place. Now a sleek, jet-black armored wyvern, Caius stretched his wings a moment before lowering himself to the ground just enough for Lightning to hop on. From there, it was up and away and Lightning swore that Caius was going to _drop_ her for a second, be it on purpose or on accident, but after a moment those worries proved to be for naught. Her eyes scanned the horizon as they flew toward Cocoon sitting on its pillar of crystal and there was little but rows and rows of tropical trees and other dense foliage for a good while around the town – which had naturally been thoroughly explored by the Guardian already over the course of their time in this era. The suspicions were confirmed when he flew over the forest and straight to the plains beyond.

All the better, in a way; after those thirty minutes she was about sick of looking down and seeing nothing but a sea of trees.

It was nothing like the Archylte Steppe; in fact, they were quite a way north from there. But the awe was the same; it was as if she’d just arrived on Pulse for the first time all over again and, honestly, she may as well have, after spending an undetermined amount of ‘time’ (if it could be called that) in Valhalla. How ironic that the same man she fought constantly in the name of Etro was the same man she was now forced to ally herself with, for the sake of their Focus; the thought almost brought a wry smile to her lips.

Beasts went about their business on the ground below – gorgonopsids and their cousins, mostly, but also various terraquatics and flan near the ponds that dotted the landscape. The largest and most fearsome foes from the steppe were completely absent in this smaller expanse, which was part of the reason that they were allowed to exist so close to New Bodhum – all of the monsters were easily dealt with in some way. Toward the cliffs that marked the eastern half of the plains, there was rusted wreckage of a some sort of building or machine (or both?) collapsed long ago, in which the Pulse Automata that occasionally gave New Bodhum trouble originated and swarmed around, their original functions forgotten as their circuits shorted and they went haywire. Chocobos also roamed free, preyed upon by the gorgonopsids although most managed to elude said predators on account of speed.

Between the landscape below (drawing closer as the Guardian decided to glide low enough to force the larger beasts to clear away), the clear blue sky above, and the wind in her hair, Lightning almost didn’t want the moment to end.

Almost.

Caius had other plans, though, and a bolt of panic shot through her heart when the wyvern beneath her suddenly lost its solid form not too far from the abandoned structure, dissipating into immaterial mist. They weren’t high enough off the ground at that point to seriously injure her, thankfully, but she did curse once she hit the ground (feet first, thankfully) and immediately fell into a crouch before rising again. He emerged from the cloud, slowly floating to the ground, before it dissipated into nothing.

“Would it kill you to give me some warning?” she muttered, giving herself a once-over, although she was quickly satisfied that she was completely fine. Still, a bit higher and she could have sprained an ankle or something, and then she would likely have been useless in their search for Yeul (well – healing magic worked wonders, but what a fitting punishment that would have been).

He smirked at her but did not reply directly, instead nodding toward the wreckage. “We search there.”

“Why would Yeul be _there_?” The words had only just been spoken when Lightnign realized that Caius probably had a way better idea of the girl’s whereabouts than she did and should probably trust him at least insofar as this went. Oh well—may as well stick with the line of questioning.

“Through the wreckage is a path that will take us to a cavern and a ravine below. There’s also another way down, that way—” he gestured to the south, where Lightning could see that the ground abruptly dropped off not dissimilar to some areas of the Archylte Steppe; it seemed that the surface of Pulse was absolutely full of little cracks and fissures— “ _If_ you would like to learn what it feels like to have your spine shatter.”

A chill ran down her spine at that. Her gaze flitted from the ravine to the entrance before finally settling on Caius again.  “That didn’t answer my question.”

“The Yeul of this era expressed a desire to visit this particular cavern,” he explained, his eyes narrowing a bit. His lips parted to continue after a moment before he seemed to decide against it and just started walking.

Lightning was close behind for a while, but by the time they had to deal with the first robot she had pulled ahead; even Caius’s smooth, long strides were no match for how she practically marched into battle, years upon years of military training (and experience dealing with them) paying off when she caught the sluggish Pulsework creations off guard each and every time. Caius seemed content to let her deal with them, but then again – it was difficult to tell. The only subtle nuances of his expression that would hint otherwise were either hidden by shadows or gone completely once they stepped into the wreckage properly. Twisted, rusted metal blocked the sunlight above and directed them along a pretty straight-forward path – given that some of the wreckage had fallen and blocked off other tunnels that may have once lead elsewhere. For a while, it reminded her of the Mah’habara Subterra, but before long it opened into a huge cave lined with crystals colored clear and fluorescent green. Cracks in the surprisingly high ceiling were abound and were, in fact, one of the few sources of light – no doubt, the large one in the middle was the one that Caius had invited her to try for bonus spine-breakings.

The air tasted of rust and dank standing water and had Lightning come from a different background, she may have covered her mouth and nose with her hand in an attempt to filter the air. She almost did, actually, although she knew it would be no use – but she opted to breathe through her mouth instead. It was one of those smells that smelled like it could have made you ill. She had no idea why the Yeul of this era, or any Yeul for that matter – no, or actually _anyone_ would want to visit this cavern. It was photogenic, sure, but all-in-all, it probably wasn’t that special when stacked up against everything that Pulse had to offer.

Lightning made sure to tread carefully and while Caius seemed to have little problem treading through water that had been standing so long that it was more like _slime_ , Lightning avoided it whenever possible. The cave was eerily silent, and it seemed to do a marvelous job at setting both of them on edge, and Caius actually lashed out at a few harmless cave bats a few times. She felt sorry for them and chewed her lip in concern but pressed onwards, eventually splitting off from Caius to cover more area, although knowing that there was no one waiting just around the corner served only to make her hair stand on end. She was prepared for an attack from anywhere in the darkness, and it wasn’t long before that preparation paid off.

Something shifted in the darkness, making the sort of wet, sticky sound that she’d expect from a flan. She froze instantly, gunblade drawn, every muscle in her body coiled like a spring. Even when no threat immediately showed itself, she remained in battle mode, cautiously starting to shuffle aside to peek around a pillar of stone…

… Ah.

Her first instinct was to kick off whatever had grabbed hold of her foot, but it held it in a grip of iron. Clear goop pooled around it and she quickly shifted her gunblade into its rifle mode and fired a few rounds at it. The bullets merely stuck and became suspended in the goop as it rose from the floor, but at least her foot was free and she could face the monster on fair footing.

Lightning leapt back as it swept at her, its slimy arms missing her by mile. She loosed a few Thunder spells, and their _crack_ broke the silence and pierced the darkness of the cavern in such a way that nearly blinded and deafened her, but it wasn’t long until that fight was over.

Unfortunately, that couldn’t be the _only_ battle that needed to be fought, and around her various pools of scum were starting to wake from their slumber. She rolled her shoulder back once, readjusting her grip on her gunblade a bit and drawing her free hand to her chest. She clicked her tongue once, her lips quirking in a slight smirk.

_“Come on, then…”_

 

* * *

 

He could hear the Thunder spells in the distance, but he did not turn around or waver. Lightning could handle herself, he knew. The path she’d taken in the cavern, though, had lead deeper into the darkness – and while he may not recall precisely what lurked there, he had more pressing concerns, the foremost of which was _Yeul_. She was equally likely to be waiting for them down either of the paths, really, although more likely to be down the path of least resistance that he’d taken – but there was no use leaving anything up to chance.

Caius took a deep breath and held it for a moment once he was out of the cavern and standing at the bottom of a deep, deep crevice – one weathered in the face of the plains gradually over the centuries. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume something like this had been weathered away over the span of _millions_ of years – and he hoped he never got to living long enough to see the surface of Gran Pulse change that gradually, but there was a simple sort of beauty in it. The river that was responsible was little but a stream now, narrow and shallow compared to the grandeur it had likely once held. Rather than roar, it babbled softly as the water flowed over another deep drop-off and disappeared from sight and fell silent.

Sunlight filtered down the crack, illuminating dark stone walls and a mossy floor just enough to see, but not enough to draw attention away from the variety of bioluminescent life that made its home there, from the flowers of plants normally only blooming at twilight to glowing moss growing on rocks. The air smelled and tasted _fresh_ here, much better than it had within the cavern – and he allowed himself a moment’s pause to enjoy it.

Then, he continued on, following the stream away from the drop-off, one hand resting on the grip of his gunblade. It was cool down in this ravine, thanks to the shade provided by the steep walls and the water. Every so often, he came across traces of a civilization long abandoned, if the way metal shells had been rusted out were any indication; he respectfully stepped around them, stepping into the shallow stream when he was so required to. This strategy worked until a collapsed bridge blocked his path in a network of rusted metal beams and rotten wood, at which point he stopped and looked the obstacle over. There were side paths behind him, but this particular cave system could go on for miles for all he knew, and before continuing any further it was likely a good idea to go and fetch Lightning…

He debated with himself over this idea for a moment before he turned back. It was with great regret that he followed the stream back to the cavern – and he held his breath for a moment as he descended once more into the dank depths of the cave.

 

* * *

 

The living pond scum didn’t serve to be much of an issue, even after a few of them merged to become a more familiar foe – Ectopudding. It felt like that little act of kindness for that Cie’th stone was a million years in the past, honestly. No, the real trouble started when she descended into the depths beyond that.

Maybe she should have known that nothing good could be lurking in the darkest corners of the cave and maybe she should have stayed closer to Caius. Maybe she should have avoided casting a Fire spell and holding the resulting ball of magic in her hand in an effort to light her way. Maybe she should have asked if there was anything she needed to know about the cave’s natives before striking out on her own – of course, she could handle herself just fine in battle, and there was little she could do about being ambushed, but she would sure love to know if something like a very large, very angry lizard called this place home. Just, you know, in advance. That might have been nice.

She huffed and let the Fire spell she held in her hands fly at the lizard before its jaws could clamp down on her right arm, and it squealed and shrunk away, flicking its tongue out. Its eyes glowed in the darkness and for a moment, Lightning and the lizard just circled each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move. She stared up at it, gesturing a challenge before holding up her sword as one might a shield. The dragon lunged, and she deflected the blow before countering with a Blizzard spell, attempting to feel out her foe’s weaknesses. Physically, the lizard didn’t seem to have many, being covered with thick hide and scales from head to tail. It resembled a wingless faeryl, honestly – and from short bouts of time gazing in Valhalla, she knew how fearsome _those_ could be, given the trouble it gave Serah and Noel.

Lightning resolved to tread carefully with this beast. Its tail swished from side to side briefly, a low growl building in its throat.

“C’mon,” she said, brandishing her gunblade. They couldn’t keep playing this game forever, she knew; one of them would have to go on the offensive first. She didn’t plan on it being her – but if she had to, she would, for the sake of getting through this. Thankfully, she didn’t have to, because after a moment, it reared up on its stubby hind legs before coming back down and digging its claws into the ground, sending shockwaves out but more importantly forcing up columns of rocks that forced her to roll out of the way. She responded in kind, lunging at the beast with her gunblade and picking at the spots where the hide seemed weaker to allow for flexibility.

The blade came away with a little blood on it, but it soon became apparent that that did little more than _piss off_ the dragon; the hide was so thick on its underside and the scales so tough on its back that while the cut seemed to go fairly deep, it amounted to little. She clenched her teeth when the beast swept her off her feet with its claws and she hit the ground, hard, then rolled back and out of range of its physical attacks to come up with a new plan of action.

The beast forced her back on the defensive, and it wasn’t long before it lunged at her and caught her gunblade in its teeth. Lightning refused to have it torn away from her, though, her blue eyes dangerously narrow as she pushed _back,_ pushing the blade deeper into the beast’s mouth until it cut into the thin skin connecting its top and bottom jaws and it released her weapon with a sqeal. She followed up with a barrage of spells: Fire, Thunder, Blizzard, Aero, Water – some were more effective than others to be sure, but they all looked like they hurt to some degree, and they were certainly more effective than attacking the beast physically.

She dodged when the beast swept at her once more before pinning its clawed hand to the ground, working the blade of her sword through the space between the thinner scales and piercing straight through. It let out a cry of pain and she dragged her blade down as far as it would go – almost slicing it clean in half – before ripping it out. Its shrieks echoed off the walls of the cavern and after a moment it reared up – and she was ready to dodge stone columns, but instead it unleashed waves of _fire_ from within its belly. Lightning reacted a bit too late to curtail all of the damage and her arms and legs were badly burned, but she pushed through the pain despite the tears it brought to her eyes.

She could keep up with _Caius Ballad_ , the immortal and _stupidly powerful_ warrior in battle, both in his human form and as Chaos Bahamut. Who the hell did this thing think it was? Because it was not Caius Ballad. It was good as dead the instant it thought picking on her would be a good idea, honestly.

She let the cool blue light of several Cure spells consume her, heal her wounds a little but not completely, and she jumped a bit when she felt a hand on her shoulder and the healing process seemed to simply continue of its own volition.

“What, decide to be _useful_?” she muttered, but Caius only smirked at her, though the expression quickly faded when the beast was upon them again. The cavern was illuminated briefly when he let two small graviton bursts fly – and then a huge one that exploded in lavender light and black runes and kicked up a fair amount of dust. After it cleared and she cleared her throat, she shouted at him over the beast’s cries: “And you didn’t tell me about this thing when we arrived here _why_?”

“It slipped my mind,” he replied, grunting as the beast’s injured hand collided with his side and tossed him to the side as if he were a ragdoll. He took a moment to shake it off before lunging at the dragon and digging the Organyx’s blade into its elbow, cleaving through hide and flesh; Lightning winced at the sound that the blade made and _yeah, she’d definitely need to have Maqui look at it before Caius broke the damn thing_. The beast let out a shriek and tried to catch Caius in its massive jaws before he leapt back.

Lightning accepted this answer for the moment and let loose another round of spells. The dragon shrunk away, forced on the defensive, and as it reared back in preparation to let loose another stream of fire, she fired off a Thundaga spell. It was stunned for a moment before deciding to attempt to burn her and Caius to a crisp anyway – but they were ready for it this time and while they both sustained heavy burns and they were still painful, they could mitigate some of the damage with weak healing magic. When the heat faded away, they were still standing, and one more blow from Caius’s sword that cleaved through the back of the beast’s neck at the base of its skull made sure that _it_ wasn’t.

They met each other’s eyes in the darkness, panting. Lightning took a moment to tend to her injuries and she was sure that Caius’s were already healing. She cast her gaze into the depths that were previously blocked by this beast and saw only glowing crystals and darkness.

After a few moments, Caius hopped down from atop the dragon’s corpse and nodded in the direction he’d headed down previously before simply continuing off, and Lightning paused a moment before she followed close behind, biting back her irritation.

“You’re lucky I showed up when I did,” he commented once they were within sight of the ravine and the sunlight that filtered down into it; Lightning’s heart nearly leaped a bit. She was good and damn ready to get out of that dank cave. She could detect the note of playfulness behind the words – and she knew that he wasn’t seriously going to give her a hard time about it, but perhaps he just thought there was something fun about getting her riled up.

“I could have handled it,” she snipped back.

“It killed me once, centuries ago.”

“ _I_ could have handled it,” Lightning repeated. In fact, she actually had been handling herself pretty well before Caius arrived; the only reasons it would have offed him those centuries ago could have been the fact that (a) he didn’t have the additional centuries of knowledge that he’d no doubt accumulated in the years between The Fall and Valhalla and/or (b) the fact that he dove into battle with glee and tried to brute force his way through things. During their battles in Valhalla, sometimes Lightning swore that he _wanted_ to die. (Wait…)

He snorted, a smile teasing at the corners of his lips. “I’m sure you could have.”

They continued on for a little bit down the ravine before they decided to stop and rest shortly after the sun passed the apex of its path in the sky. While Lightning took a moment to rest and tend to her wounds, Caius stood and waited, though she could tell that he wanted to continue on. He shifted his weight every so often and eventually seemed about to begin pacing, but stayed, for the most part, standing in place.

Lightning decided that she would take her damn sweet time; she knew how important Yeul was to Caius and (more importantly) that she would likely be vital to completing their Focus given that, discrepancies aside, she appeared in both of their visions, but that didn’t mean there was any need to _rush_ , per se. She let the Cure spells work their magic on her burns, tending to one arm at a time and making sure that they were thoroughly healed before continuing. After her arms were healed and the skin was once again smooth, she moved on to the few burns that had made it to her legs.

Sometime before she started healing the burns on her left leg, Caius seemed to get the message that Lightning was in no hurry to go anywhere, and he sat down. He washed the blood of the dragon off of Organyx’s blade in the stream and didn’t look over his shoulder until she spoke—“Caius.”

He grunted an acknowledgement and she paused before continuing. Small talk was never her strong suit, but… She opened her mouth to speak then closed it, initial words dying at her lips and deciding to ask a question that was at least a tiny bit more _relevant_ , one that she could handwave as being somehow important rather than just being her feeling like the silence that was growing between them was a bit uncomfortable. “What does it feel like to become Chaos Bahamut?” Any gory details had always been obscured by the black smoke his body was enveloped in when shifting between forms, but…

Caius winced and looked away. Lightning immediately regretted the question, and for a long few moments it looked like he wasn’t going to answer, but then he did, his voice smooth like silk and all traces of his initial reaction to the question vanished into thin air. “Imagine the worst pain you can. Then imagine it being ten times worse.”

At that, _Lightning_ winced. “Worse than dying?”

“That depends; technically, it _is_ dying,” he commented with a shrug. Considering that, she didn’t understand why he switched between his forms so freely in Valhalla, or offered it as a mode of transportation just that morning. Lightning wasn’t sure she understood how he could speak of death so casually, but with centuries upon centuries under his belt and likely many ‘deaths’ along the way, she supposed it was… justifiable? It wasn’t nearly as final as it was for those who did not hold the Heart of Chaos.

It was with a knot in her stomach that Lightning realized that she, too, would go through the same things if Etro did not figure out another way to keep Caius from destroying it and thus dooming Her to oblivion. She may not have seen the path Caius walked to get here – or rather, she only saw bits and pieces – but she certainly saw the end result. And to envision herself in such a position…

No. _Unthinkable_.

When next she cast her gaze to Caius, he was on his feet once more, and after she was satisfied that her wounds wouldn’t get infected and required no further attention, she followed him after he started away.


	8. Reunion

Their exploration of the side paths was short lived; most had caved in long ago or been blocked off by immovable wreckage. So it was up and over the fallen bridge it was. Lightning made short work of it, leaping up and over it in just a few leaps. Caius wasn’t far behind and handled the situation with similar grace. From there, the ravine turned into a tunnel before opening up into the bottom of a deep pit, partially open to the sky. It reminded Lightning a bit of the Vallis Media with how full of plant life it seemed – rather than stone and moss, the floor of the pit was made up of amazingly soft grass and flowers. As she walked, her footsteps were practically silent. The walls around them were almost sheer cliffs and she briefly wondered how many monsters had met their end after not being mindful of where they were stepping. Near the far edge, some of the wall had been apparently eroded away by the water that flowed in a small alcove – apparently an underground river that disappeared out of sight in short order.

And it was there that they found Yeul, sitting with her feet in the water. Her shoes sat beside her and she looked up at Caius as he approached before he even _said_ anything; she reached out to him as he crouched near the water’s edge, and they exchanged some words – too quietly for Lightning to make out exactly what they were saying from where she paused near the entrance, but Caius smiled (didn’t smirk, but actually _smiled_!) and took a seat beside Yeul as she kicked her feet back and forth a bit in the water. From what she could tell from where she stood, this Yeul was _drastically_ younger than the one that had made her appearance in the visions that contained hints as to their Focus, and Lightning couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed. Her headpiece had previously sat next to her shoes and her hair was loose and free, but after a moment of conversing with Caius she smiled and put it back on.

Lightning was overcome with the very distinct feeling of being an _intruder_ as she drew closer – a feeling which was only heightened by the way Caius stared at her. She made a conscious effort to keep her hands visible and stay a healthy distance away from the seeress. She crouched near the water’s edge and dipped her left hand in the water – it was cool, nearly freezing compared to the air around them, and it flowed gently over her skin. She sent a few ripples through the water and disturbed a few of the bright, colorful fish that made their homes within the gently-flowing water; they took off, darting into the shadows. She could hear Caius and Yeul better now, though they seemed to be making a conscious effort to keep their voices low, letting her know that they were very much aware of her presence even though she was making an attempt to be polite and give them their moment.

One of Caius’s hands rested in Yeul’s and she stroked slow circles on the palm of his hand through his glove. They spoke softly about matters which were of no real concern to Lightning, but she had to admit she was surprised to hear Caius speak so… gently. She never actually thought that she’d think of Caius as gentle in any way, shape, or form, even considering his relationship with Yeul and how he cared for her so much that he was willing to _destroy time itself_ if it meant freeing her from her cycle of death and rebirth.

Eventually, Yeul’s attention turned to _Lightning_ – and she could feel her gaze on her, and she met it for a brief moment before turning her gaze back into the clear depths of the water. Her eyes carried the appearance of someone _far_ older than this Yeul ought to be – she looked to be no older than eight or nine – and it seemed almost as if Yeul knew far more about Lightning than Lightning knew of her.

That was… A little more than distressing. Not surprising, to be sure, given what little she knew of Yeul, but distressing.

She looked to Caius (who shook his head, and Yeul visibly deflated and appeared to reconsider whatever she was planning on saying originally) and let down her hair before she spoke. “You are Lightning.”

Her lips twitched, but she managed to keep her expression relatively neutral. “Yeah, that’s me. You must be Yeul?”

“One of many, yes.” She smiled at her at that. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

 

* * *

 

Once pleasantries were dealt with, they departed. Yeul remained close to Caius, holding his hand; Lightning lead the way. He caught a spark of impatience in her eyes when it took Caius and Yeul a moment to make it over the wreckage that, on the way, the two warriors had cleared in seconds; the Guardian glared right back. It took much of his willpower not to snap at her – ‘ _Yeul is just a child_ ,’ after all – but after that they were on their way once more. Lightning took care of what few monsters came out of hiding both within the ravine and within the cavern. Occasionally Yeul spoke up, to ask an innocent question, such as the difference between stalactites and – questions which Caius happily answered.

“Stalactites are the ones on the ceiling.”

This simple fact seemed to absolutely _amaze_ the child at his side.

By the time they made it out of the cavern and cleared the wreckage once and for all, it was mid-afternoon. Used to the protection from the heat that the shade provided within the cavern and ravine, the sun beating down on their backs was a bit less than welcome – Caius envied Yeul and Lightning a bit for the protection from the heat that their light-colored cloth clothing provided (as opposed to black leather, as comprised most of his armor), but always an expert at pushing through despite the conditions, no complaint slipped past his lips. They continued in the direction of the town on foot, using the ever-present crystallized Cocoon as a guide, and as the sun progressed in its path across the clear, blue sky, they eventually turned to it for advice as well. Simply flying back crossed his mind a few times, but the Yeul of this era preferred to walk whenever possible, as he’d learned over the course of the time he’d spent with her (centuries ago from his perspective, though still clear as crystal), and she certainly seemed to be enjoying the scenery. She’d told him that her leg had been bothering her during their short chat near the water’s edge, but she walked with a certain skip in her step now, keeping up with both his and Lightning’s almost militaristic pace easily.

Even at nine or so, Yeul was a lot hardier than most would take her for at a glance. She had to be, given the lifestyle she was forced to lead.

Even so – she did not have the same stamina as he or Lightning did, and eventually Caius had to carry her. The plains at ground level were far vaster than one might think looking down on it from the sky, but the sun had begun to set over the horizon by the time they reached the edge of the forest, and Caius’s legs were beginning to protest – but he could put _that_ out of his mind easily. Yeul was beginning to nod off, head resting against his shoulder and hands linked over his chest. He paused a moment and she stirred; he nudged her legs up a bit and she shifted her weight so she sat higher on his back in response, and then continued in Lightning’s wake, remaining mindful of his footing all the while.

For the most part, they had traveled in silence – first because there was little to say and now because neither of them wanted to disturb Yeul. But they couldn’t go on forever, he knew, and it was still quite a ways back to the house – and he’d yet to tell Yeul of everything that’s happened in what, to her, was a comparatively short time, and…

“Lightning, wait.”

She slowed and came to a halt before looking over her shoulder at him.

“Let’s rest there.” He nodded toward a nearby rock formation that would provide some protection from prowling monsters at night, although it was perhaps a bit too close to the forest for his liking. Too much cover for monsters, but just enough cover for them.

“Having trouble keeping up?” She didn’t sound annoyed, but rather, a tad amused.

“No. But it would be wiser if we continued in the morning.”

Lightning seemed to consider this for a moment before shrugging, apparently in agreement even if she seemed like she would have preferred to continue on. They made their way over to the rocks and Caius set Yeul down; she mumbled something and he patted her shoulder with a slight smile. Rocks surrounded them in a crescent formation, shielding them from view from both the plains and some of the forest. Without any real camp to set up, they would go through the night on the ground – and all involved seemed content to go the night hungry for the moment, although once the sun disappeared over the trees and cast the group in shadow, Caius made quick work of building a fire. Magic took care of the hard part even though it didn’t burn as bright or as warm as a fire built properly would have; Lightning noticed his reluctance to leave Yeul’s side and ventured out to gather what little fuel the spell needed to keep burning in his stead.

And by the time the sun had disappeared completely, leaving only the stars and the moon to light the sky, they’d more or less settled down. Yeul was fast asleep, laying across Caius’s lap; Lightning sat a fair amount of distance away, just close enough to enjoy the warmth of the fire but far enough away as to not intrude. Her back was stiff and her arms were crossed over her chest, alert even though her eyes were closed. The golden light of the fire cast shadows on her features in such a way that only served to enunciate them – all the soft curves, all the sharp angles. Military training and then their battles in Valhalla trimmed her body of most of the excess fat that may have been expected of the standard human born and raised within Lindzei’s gilded cage, leaving her form to be carved of more or less pure muscle. Her hair caught the light in such a way that turned it a sort of peachy color. Her lips were set in a frown and Caius couldn’t help but think it a shame.

She looked up at him just as he looked away, turning his gaze to the crackling flames. “What?”

“You’ve kept your distance since we found Yeul.”

“Yeah. So?”

He snorted softly. “It was just an observation.” Pause, a beat of consideration – and he didn’t really seem to consciously register that one hand had fallen to stroke Yeul’s hair as she slept. “You needn’t have gone through the trouble.”

She quirked an eyebrow.

Caius relaxed a bit against the rocks. “I suppose… While not always the case, you are an ally when it comes to… this. I trust that you will not harm Yeul.”

Lightning’s lips curved in a smile and she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Perhaps his trust was a little misplaced; Yeul was cute and she was a child and she was _more or less_ the crux of everything that’s happened between them thus far and Lightning may not mean any harm toward _Yeul_ , but the seeress was one of the few things she could count on to keep Caius in check for the time being. “I’m flattered.”

No matter how misplaced the Guardian’s trust was, though, she was a bit ashamed to admit that it was not returned. But at the same time, she knew that _no one_ would slight her for that.

They lapsed into silence and eventually, once crackling flames had been reduced to little more than embers, a silent sort of agreement was made: Lightning would keep watch while Yeul and Caius rested for a bit. Never cut out for guard duty, she found herself preoccupied by the stars above them, but the night was peaceful and quiet and she was otherwise attentive. The constellations were unknown to her and a band of light crossed the sky – it was just as wondrous as the first night she’d spent on Gran Pulse back when she was still a Pulse l’Cie and Cocoon still hung quietly in the sky of its own accord rather than resting atop a pillar of crystal. Valhalla’s sky being starless and thus having not seen the stars in quite a while, she actually had to remind herself that there weren’t _cities_ lighting the sky above her, but actual stars. The cosmos beyond the horizon were completely and utterly endless – they were the largest kind of infinity.

Her breath escaped her in a sigh. The night was silent save for the sound of her toying with her gunblade, switching it from gun form to sword form and back again and then letting it rest on the ground beside her. Caius and Yeul were lost to dreams, she could tell – she was snuggled up into his chest and he held her there in a loose embrace. Lightning thought that _she_ was short compared to Caius, but the ancient warrior absolutely _dwarfed_ Yeul in each and every single aspect. Several times over. Briefly, she wondered if she would be so content to sleep in his arms if she knew of what he had done – how this Caius was nearly twice as old as the Caius she’d known previously, how he’d attempted to wreck the timeline and kill a deity in her name.

Some things, of course, were better left unknown.

Lightning stiffened when she heard something moving – then relaxed a bit (though certainly not completely) when she realized that it was just Caius stirring a bit, releasing Yeul (as much as was possible with her laying on one of his arms) and shifting onto his back.

She felt herself fighting to remain conscious for a while, though inevitably nodded off. When she woke next, the moon had just crossed the apex of its path across the night sky and Caius had woken up, his amethyst eyes scanning the stars above them. She grumbled a bit and he made soft noise as if to urge her to be quiet, and she fell silent once more. Yeul stirred in his arms but did not wake. Once he was satisfied that she was still fast asleep, he cast his gaze over to her.

In a low voice, he asked, “Pleasant dreams?” She was sure that he was smirking at her, though the shadows cast on his features made it impossible to discern his expression one way or the other.

“Had better,” she replied, minding her volume. She wasn’t sure if the low, amused humming in his throat was actual humming or a suppressed laugh.

And for a few moments, he was silent, before he continued: “Thank you for coming with me to find Yeul.”

“It wasn’t a personal favor.” And it wasn’t one that he asked for in the first place…

“I know. Thank you anyway.”

She huffed and shifted so she was laying down – and became acutely aware of the ache in her neck and back. Yeah, she wasn’t going to nod off sitting up again any time soon. “Don’t mention it.” She paused. “Hey, Caius?”

“Hm?”

“Can you tell me about Yeul?”

Something she couldn’t pinpoint crept into his voice – “ _Which one_?”

“This one.”

He shifted, slipping his arm out from under Yeul and pulling himself into an upright position. “She sleeps like a _rock_.” Lightning smirked at that. Caius let himself lapse into a thoughtful silence. “She loves to travel, and… She’s full of questions. About the world, mostly, but occasionally about our—the Farseers’ customs. A… natural consequence of being raised in silence, I suppose.” There – sadness. Lightning frowned, and she opened her mouth to speak before Caius cut her off. He brushed a strand of hair away from the seeress’s face before patting her head gently – and almost thoughtfully. “Don’t get the wrong impression. It was because her family loved her very much.”

“They loved her, so they raised her in silence?”

“As soon as Yeul learns to speak, she must walk the path of a seeress. They knew I would take her away as soon as she did, so they kept her from learning words in the only way they could think of.”

“… Ah.” Beat of consideration. “I’m guessing just… Letting her live with her family in the first place isn’t an option.”

“It is the duty of a Guardian to protect the seeress. Because there are people who seek to exploit Yeul’s ability to see the future, she must live out of sight. It’s been this way since Paddra fell,” he explained, and Lightning go the distinct impression that he was talking to her as he would a child – gently and significantly less condescending than he usually did, but even that itself made it come off more condescending. He spoke to her as if there was no way she would understand, as one might address a child whom was too young to understand… But to be fair, she wasn’t exactly in the know about Farseer culture, or the history of their once-great civilization. She visited the ruins of the city once, but didn’t glean much knowledge from the Cie’th-infested archaeopolis, if only because she had more pressing concerns at the time. “Over the centuries, however, this custom has become less and less popular. As have I.”

“Wonder why.” That particular custom sounded like it served only to tear families apart. Caius’s popularity, in a similar vein – well, he was certainly a sinister figure to begin with, from the armor to the icy, jaded look in his eyes. The wicked sword he wielded before Etro branded them and dropped them here probably didn’t help, either.

“It doesn’t take _much_ wondering,” he admitted, laying back down. “But I know that she is safe in my hands, and that is what matters.”

She shrugged and failed to suppress a mighty yawn. “I guess.”

Caius let out another hum-laugh at that. “Sleep, Lightning. I’ll keep watch for now.” In response, she simply looked at him. And he let out a sigh and continued: “No harm will come to you. You have my word.”

“Yeah?”

“I shall subject myself to a Tonberry’s wrath if I break that promise.”

At that, Lightning seemed… Well, not completely satisfied, but more satisfied than she had been, and she let her eyes slip closed once more, and although sleep did not come easily, it did come eventually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I love feedback! Either here or on [Tumblr](http://two--pair.tumblr.com/) or otherwise. :^)


	9. Two Paths Diverged

The morning came swiftly. Lightning awoke long after the sun rose for once and Yeul and Caius were already up – Caius apparently went on a brief excursion to find food because both he and Yeul were working on familiar thick-skinned fruit with white flesh and black seeds. When she stirred and awoke, Caius tossed her one that he’d apparently set aside for her, and she caught it – all reflex. She was about to throw it back before she finally blinked the sleep out of her eyes and she realized that he was doing her a _favor_ – or attempting to, anyway. Lightning muttered a thanks as she pulled herself into an upright position and worked on peeling back the fruit’s skin.

Caius and Yeul were once again conversing softly, and after a while – long enough for Lightning to begin eating, anyway (going slowly to make sure that she wasn’t making a mess of herself with the juice) – she beckoned her over. Lightning hesitated before joining them in their little circle; the seeress smiled at her and after a moment of shock, she smiled back.

Lightning had never been a _huge_ fan of children – perhaps Hope had been an exception, but he was more of a teenager than a child, even if she looked down on him toward the beginning of her journey as a Pulse l’Cie – but she recognized that they provided one of the purest forms of acceptance.

Caius acknowledged and accepted her presence with a nod. Lightning met his gaze levelly – and nodded in return.

The silence that grew between them was, somehow, in a twist of fate, not awkward. It wasn’t precisely comfortable, granted, but it was far less charged than the silence that ensued when there were things that needed to be said between her and Caius, but weren’t. She took the time to eat quietly, and the conversation that Yeul and Caius had prior to her joining them seemed long-forgotten – either the Guardian or the seeress either refused to or didn’t see fit to continue in her presence, both of them instead finishing off their fruit. After that, Caius silently fussed over Yeul, making sure every little thing was perfect – and it was probably a good thing that Yeul enjoyed the attention, and even requested that Caius help her put her hair up after everything else was attended to. After a point she had started responding quietly to his touches before it was her turn to fuss at him. She briefly brushed his hair out of his face, let her fingers brush lightly against his jawline as she let her hand fall before pulling back. And she smiled a bit, eyes shining with both ancient wisdom and childish naïveté as she decided that yes, she was satisfied with the appearance of her immortal Guardian.

There was something about their gestures toward each other that reawakened an ache in Lightning’s heart that she swore had been hushed long ago, that she swore she had dealt with. An ache from a wound that she thought had been patched up and healed – but in hindsight, she figured that wounds heal, but scars are forever.

The woman did not realize that she’d paused eating, lowering the mostly-empty shell of the fruit from her face slowly before Yeul addressed her by name, briefly. Her gaze flickered down before she met the knowing emerald eyes of the seeress, and when Lightning hummed a noise to indicate that she hadn’t quite caught what she said, Yeul was more than happy to repeat: “You are the one who was attacked by the chaos on the day of Cocoon’s fall.” A statement, not a question.

“Y…” Lightning wasn’t sure why her words suddenly left her, though she quickly regained her composure. “Yes. It dragged me into Valhalla.” She cast a sidelong glance to Caius, though did not speak further; if the way Yeul also looked at Caius, and Caius looked away somewhat guiltily, was any indication, she already knew that they’d battled constantly in Valhalla. She, to protect Etro; and him, to destroy her.

“As I thought,” she muttered, frowning for a moment. Then she smiled – “It was Etro’s providence that—”

“Yeul. _”_ When Caius finally spoke, it was her name, and his tone carried a warning – but the girl in question ignored him.

She continued, firmer and a bit defiant, “It was Etro’s providence that brought you home. Welcome back, Lightning.”

Pause. “Thanks.”

Yeul rose, then, and Lightning could tell that Caius had to fight himself not to rise with her. The girl began pacing, slowly, in a circle around them, eyes directed toward the sky. “But the future has changed, and I – I don’t have the specifics, but – that could be very good or…” When she cast her gaze to Lightning next, she met not her eyes, but focused on her chest, on the precise spot that she’d been branded. The blue-eyed woman shifted and covered the spot with one hand on instinct. “… Or very bad.”

More urgently—“ _Yeul._ ” But Yeul just raised her hand and just like that, (much to Lightning’s surprise) Caius was bidden to silence, although his lips set in a firm frown and his eyebrows knit together as he cast his gaze away and huffed.

“Should I be concerned?” Lightning mumbled, letting her hand drop away from her brand.

“I don’t believe so. Maybe. We’ll see. But enough of that.” And at that, the subject was dropped (much to Caius’s visible relief) and Yeul flashed a smile. “Do you mind if I borrow Caius while you go on ahead?”

“What?” Yes, she minded. Her voice had ended up sounding a bit harsher than she had intended, though, earning a look from Caius.

“There is something we must retrieve. I promise we will return by sunset today.” She bowed her head respectfully, but even so the gesture made Lightning feel small. As if _she,_ Etro’s champion, ought to be bowing to this little girl. How could she refuse?

“…Alright.” Lightning rose slowly. “Fine. I’ll hold you to that. And stay safe – that’s for both of you.”

 

* * *

 

It wasn’t long after that that they parted ways. It was a fair bit past noon before Lightning got home, and she promptly took a shower; dirt and grime and traces of dried blood peeled away from her body with the help of the minty-smelling soap and flowed down the drain. For a few long moments, it turned the water a slightly different color, but soon enough she was satisfied that she was clean. She changed into a white blouse-type shirt that hugged her body and a tan skirt that hugged her hips but became far looser by the time it hit mid-thigh, the hem eventually terminating just above her knee. And with that, thigh-high boots – no, she’d wear sneakers, maybe – and it was then that she realized that even when she tried to wear different outfits down to New Bodhum every day, she either had too many clothes or was very, very unused to picking out outfits. Probably both.

She looked herself over several times in the bathroom mirror, briefly toyed with her hair and briefly toyed with her sleeves, pulling them down over her elbows. She eventually settled on white thigh-high _socks_ (well, more like tights) with brown high-top shoes that she wasn’t aware she still _had_ , had probably _never_ worn, and was surprised still fit. And after brushing her teeth, she set out, heading into town. She was barely across the beach when Snow caught sight of her and waved a hello, though he was preoccupied a ways away for a while longer. Before long, though, he pried himself away from whatever he’d been doing, be it for neglect of duties (she snorted a bit at the thought) or for wrapping up what needed to be done. He arrived at the NORA house not long after Lightning had begun to ascend the steps and greeted her with an (somewhat overly, if you asked her) enthusiastic: “Hey, sis!”

And, in keeping with what had essentially become a tradition (although the words she spoke weren’t necessarily true anymore, with all the wedding planning and banns posting even though the wedding had yet to be done; Snow and Serah had waited this long and apparently were content to wait a little bit longer to have the wedding they absolutely always _dreamed_ of having, planned all the way down to the last detail to make sure it was absolutely flawless), she answered with, “I’m not your sister.” She could keep the smile away from her features thanks to years of practice, but she couldn’t keep it out of her voice.

Other than Snow, Lebreau was the first to notice her presence. She was working in the kitchen and greeted her with a wave and a smile before returning to her work, adding the chopped onions and what looked like a few sliced cloves of fresh garlic she’d set aside in a bowl to a waiting sauté pan that already had a few mushrooms in it. The smell of that long with whatever she had going on in the oven was enough to make her mouth water – and a more reasonable part of Lightning wondered if preparing this much for lunch was even warranted, but most of her (i.e. the hungry part) was quietly celebrating and looking forward to what the dark-haired woman would serve. A small covered pot rested on the stove’s back burner, and she swore that she saw a vicious red sauce inside, but she willed herself to stay on the proper side of the counter and leave the chef to her work.

Next was Yuj, looking up and throwing a smile her way, although he didn’t move from where he sat beside Noel, perhaps on account that Snow the cat was comfortably curled up in his lap and audibly purring. She was a fluffy little thing and Yuj seemed content to give her fuss and groom her with a small brush; the cat expressed her approval of such treatment by nudging her head into the blue-haired man’s hand and clawlessly kneading into his leg. Gadot and Maqui were absent and Lightning decided that they were probably out helping with patrols or somesuch.

Then finally, Serah, absolutely overjoyed to see both her and Snow (although undoubtedly she’d seen Snow about fifty other times that day). She rose from her seat across from Noel, leaving him to consider his next move in their game of checkers, and immediately pulled her sister into a brief embrace before she leaned up (and, perhaps more effectively and importantly, Snow leaned down) and planted a kiss on her fiancé’s cheek. Lightning couldn’t help but smile, although that smile was somewhat short lived, because Serah immediately demanded: “Where have you _been_?”

She caught Lightning off guard a bit – both because of her tone (a bit angry, but concern surely overrode any _true_ anger) and the fact that she had chosen _that_ note to start off on. Lightning placed her hand on her younger sister’s shoulder. “Me and Caius went to find Yeul yesterday,” she explained, fully intending to leave it at that before, to finally dispel the worry in Serah’s eyes, she gestured to herself and continued, “I’m here and I’m fine. See?”

With some reluctance, Serah let her smile show through. In the end, that was one of the only things that mattered after all – wasn’t it?

After Noel finally made his move, with minimal shuffling around, Snow and Lightning fit themselves in around the group. Lightning took a seat in the ample space between Noel and Yuj (the cat started to rise from his lap, but after a moment decided it wasn’t worth it since Yuj was far more willing to give her fuss than Lightning was, and wound up simply stretching before plopping down again, making squinty eyes at the eldest Farron in lieu of plunking herself down in her lap) and Snow the human took a seat beside Serah toward the end of the wrap-around couch where he had room to sit comfortably (on account of his height), resting one arm across the back of it.

One look at the checkers board told Lightning that Noel was either very new to or very bad at checkers; Serah was absolutely curbstomping him, with her having captured quite a few – roughly half, after she took her turn again and captured two more – of his pieces. Noel started to move, but Lightning cut him off with a nudge and shook his head before pointing to where three of Serah’s pieces were lined up in a row, ripe for the taking. With a smile, Noel took Lightning’s quiet advice and captured those three pieces, stacking them over with the scarce number he’s captured prior.

Serah’s jaw dropped and she did her best to look angry, but it was difficult to take that impression away from the look on her face when she was trying her best not to grin like a maniac and even harder to take away from her tone when it was obvious that she was trying and failing to keep a laugh out of her voice – “You’re not supposed to _help_ him!”

Lightning smirked a little. “Maybe the checkers champ should take it easy on the newbie.”

Noel looked at Lightning, a smile creeping to his lips. “I knew what I was getting into,” he put in.

“He did! I warned him!” Snow gave a shrug, casting a glance in the dark-haired man’s direction with his lips pressed together and eyebrows raised as if to say, _‘I told you so.’_

“So I should let my sister _brutalize_ the poor guy?”

Serah couldn’t stop herself from laughing anymore. “Yes!”

“No chance!”

Yuj put in with a smile – “She’s being easier on _him_ than she is on _me_.” And that fact all of them could agree on – though Lightning agreed more because everyone else was agreeing than for any other reason since she hadn’t actually been present for the incident in question, although she got a _stunning_ play-by-play of the aftermath a few days earlier. Snow the cat meowed an agreement – or perhaps a protest, given that Yuj had paused in his fussing of her, although that issue was quickly remedied.

Serah and Noel’s game progressed, though even with Lightning’s occasional advice, her sister beat him easily. A sad fate to be sure, but one he had signed up for, and well – no one could say Lightning didn’t try to help, and no one could say that Snow didn’t warn him. His disappointment lasted maybe a fraction of a second before they set the board up again and went at it. Neither Lightning nor Snow could resist looking up at each other when one or the other did something _really_ dumb (usually Noel; Serah knew how to pull herself out of tough positions and mostly her so-called mistakes were to give Noel a fighting chance), fighting to keep the smiles off of their faces (with Snow failing). Before long, a second game had concluded, and it was then that Lebreau had apparently completed the meal she was preparing.

The dark-haired woman gave them a shout and immediately Noel and Serah scrambled to clear their game off of the coffee table and tuck the board and the pieces back into the beat-up cardboard box that it had come in. Yuj banished the cat and she went sorrowfully pawing away, presumably to plop down on the deck outside and soak up some sun and tried his best to brush the cat hair off of his clothing afterwards, though no one _actually_ minded. Snow straightened up. And Lebreau served them, two at a time, the meal she had prepared: meatballs with homemade tomato sauce and sautéed onions, garlic, and mushrooms over a bed of handmade fettuccine (though it was assuredly only fettuccine because they lacked an actual pasta maker that would enable them to make spaghetti).

At a glance, Lightning felt like it was a bit much effort to go through for lunch, but she was no less grateful; she could live and die on Lebreau’s cooking with zero complaint.

They all ate in relative silence, taking their time to enjoy the food presented to them. It was all splendid – especially the sauce – and after ample amount of time, all plates served were cleaned. Lebreau was enjoying her plate, too, and from the look on her face was pretty proud of herself – justified, to say the least. The food briefly kicked up some shallow conversation before Lebreau, too, was finished, and everyone chipped in to help pick up and clean up and store away leftovers in the fridge for whenever Gadot and Maqui decided to pop by (or anyone else who wanted to claim them, really). Everyone conversed together for a while, with Yuj cracking jokes that _everyone_ laughed at, without fail, and Snow and Noel playfully harassing each other. Lebreau got in on it too, teasing each and every one of them equally and even ruffling Yuj’s hair, much to his chagrin, although he seemed to realize that she meant no offense by it.

The Farron sisters eventually formed their own little bubble of conversation, though, their conversation topics straying away from the playful teasing and the jokes to more sisterly topics that frankly, Lightning couldn’t even remember sharing with Serah – the last time they talked, really _talked_ , as _sisters_ must have been before Lightning became a sergeant. Maybe once or twice afterward, but with the way Lightning steeled herself against the world, those instances were probably short-lived. The effort was likely aided by the fact that, after cleaning up lunch, they’d taken seats beside each other on one end of the couch while the others mostly gravitated toward the other.

Serah tugged at Lightning’s sleeve a bit with a smile. “Never thought I’d see you in this stuff again.”

“Neither did I. To be honest, the shirt was just the first thing I grabbed, but uh,” Lightning paused, casting a glance down to the rest of her outfit. If she wanted to be even more honest, she wasn’t sure when, exactly, any of this stuff had been bought. Surely it must have been so long ago that it was miraculous that nothing was too tight or short or what-have-you. “I tried with the rest.”

“The effort shows. You really ought to dress up more – once this is all _dealt with_ and all, I mean, and we can get back to an _actual_ normal life.” Serah’s voice trailed off a bit toward the end, but then she perked up as she continued: “Promise me, alright?”

The elder Farron sister cracked a smile. “When I get the chance.”

“That works,” Serah replied with a smile; it may not have been the promise she requested, but from Lightning it was just as good. “I’m sure we can _give_ you the chance sooner or later, anyway.”

“Just make sure to give me advance notice. Wouldn’t want to waste an opportunity.” Admittedly, those words were only half-joking; there had been many occasions in the past – a past so far removed that honestly it felt like another lifetime – in which Lightning had overlooked things she was expected to be at and had to forego style for showing up _on time_. But that was just them breaks, with a little sister to care for, school to attend… It was easy to forget about such things with life getting in the way, especially considering that Lightning was pretty selectively social.

“I will make sure to give you a written invitation exactly _one_ month in advance,” Serah said, her words similarly lighthearted. “And remind you every other day leading up to it!”

“I’d appreciate it,” Lightning said with a laugh, sitting back a bit and folding her hands in her lap. “Thanks, Serah.”

Her younger sister hummed in contentment for a moment. “By the way, you haven’t thought about decorating at all, have you?”

“I still don’t know if I want to keep the house after this is all over. It’s a bit big for just me, you know?” Not that Lightning could just stay in the NORA house, no matter how many times they offered; it was just too noisy all the time and, well, a bit too open to the air for Lightning’s liking. Besides, it was essentially Snow and Serah’s house (in deed, but for the moment they were content to use it as a general hangout, it seemed), and as much as Lightning hated to admit it, sometimes you just gotta… let go.

“You should. Even if it’s big, you could just use the extra bedroom for something else – uh, once this is all said and done, I mean. And stuff down here is cheap right now to encourage people to move.” Serah smiled. “It’ll probably get pretty expensive once the Gran Elevator is complete, especially _here_ , so…”

Lightning shrugged. “Fair enough. I’ll try and make a decision before this all comes to a head.” Or even, before it began. She paused thoughtfully before continuing: “Somehow I don’t think money’s even an issue, though.”

“Oh?”

“Found some stuff and sold it back when the Retail Networks were still running while we were on the run as l’Cie.” Pulse especially had a lot of stuff worth selling off.

“What—oh, that’s right; the fal’Cie patched you through with proxies, didn’t they?”

“Made more than a few months’ paychecks just selling off dropped or abandoned weapons or parts,” Lightning shot a brief glare at Snow. “Even after _someone_ decided to use half my cut to help with the town.”

Snow paused before realizing that he was the one being talked about. “Hey, now; everyone thought you were dead! And it was _Lebreau’s_ idea!” Even when being defensive he couldn’t keep the smile away from his lips, and neither could Lightning; for all the trouble she gave him, she no longer actually meant most of it. As long as he treated Serah right and didn’t run off getting himself killed, Lightning was _more or less_ satisfied.

“First: clearly, you went with it; second: who said I was complaining?” Lightning clarified. They sort of had to get on their feet _somehow_ , and with the Sanctum toppled, one of the only reliable ways to get anyone down to Pulse to start building was to pay them to do it. The fal’Cie wouldn’t be of any help, certainly; may as well get on with life.

Snow started to say something but in the end just gave an exaggerated shrug and let his hands fall before he returned to his conversation with Noel.

As the afternoon wound on, they pulled out more board games and the crew got shuffled around. Snow, Noel, and Lebreau traded places with the incoming Gadot and Maqui, whom were worn out from a long day, although the leftovers from lunch certainly put the life back into them. Especially Maqui whom, despite opting to eat his portion cold (!) was near-instantly back to his old energetic self. Much to Lightning’s surprise, he then proceeded to prove himself to be (still) near-equally matched to Serah at checkers and a game that apparently they had dubbed _‘extreme chess’_ in which the board was set up in the middle four rows in the same configuration except the pieces alternated color every square rather than being organized according to side and the game ended when all opposing pieces were captured rather than being dependent on the status of the king. Lightning didn’t understand the game completely and wouldn’t pretend she did, but it was interesting to watch, at least.

It honestly felt like the day passed in the blink of an eye after she got home. Lightning didn’t really want it to end, but the sun was beginning to set over the cliffs and turn the sky from bright, vibrant blue to more of a soft lavender, and that’s when Lightning decided to take her leave. Even after much prodding, Lightning refused to let Serah walk her home – after all, if he’d held up his end of the deal, Caius was home by now – but she promised to come in early enough for breakfast tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _It begins._ The food, I mean; the food. I love writing about the food. It's not significant but that's like the one time I'm going to let myself indulge in imagery because damn, I love food, especially Italian!


	10. Conviction

The house was deathly quiet save for the sound of running water – and Lightning knew that Caius had, in fact, returned as promised. She had to admit that she was a bit surprised, but not unpleasantly so; as long as he remained where he could be watched over and so long as half of Etro’s heart beat in her chest, he couldn’t do much of anything in the way of harming the timeline. And soon he wouldn’t be too inclined to do anything to harm her or the people around her, either. She knocked on the bathroom door briefly to get his attention before speaking: “Where’s the gunblade?”

“My room,” he called back, “Yeul is asleep.”

She grunted in satisfaction at that, and acknowledged his warning with silence. Upon peeking into his room, she confirmed what she’d been told: the seeress was fast asleep on the mat Caius seemingly-happily called a bed. Lightning dared not enter, though; Yeul deserved all the sleep she could get.

She cast a glance over the space briefly – the kitchen, the alcove, the main living space. With a bit of furnishing it would surely feel smaller than it did now, and… Maybe Serah was right and she _should_ consider keeping the house. It was practically home now; she’d lived in it for a month. And how long before it was easier to just buy it than continue paying rent? At the very least, somewhere to sit other than the floor would be nice.

Some time was spent pacing in the emptiness before she found herself seated against the wall with one of the few books that had been salvaged with the rest of her belongings. The rest that she recalled owning either weren’t collected by PSICOM after she hopped on the Purge train (and thus, did not survive Eden’s fall) or were lying around in the NORA house, one of the two. She didn’t really care which one it was; toward the end, she scarcely found time to read. This particular novel she didn’t even know she owned – and its pages were yellowed with age and apparently she’d never finished it because a page toward the middle of the first half was still folded over as if she at some point meant to pick it up again. But honestly, it was better just to start over at this point.

Lightning made it a chapter (well, a prologue and a chapter; she skipped the foreword and didn’t count prologues as chapters) into the book before Caius emerged from the bathroom fully dressed in his only change of clothes, pulling the hem of his black shirt down a bit. He cast a curious glance at Lightning and she held the cover of the book up in response, although that only earned a blank look from the violet-eyed man before her. Caius paused and slipped into his room, emerging only seconds later with Organyx in hand. In the instant that both of their hands rested on the weapon, Lightning couldn’t fight the impulse to ask, flashing him the cover of the book once more: “Do you know what this says?”

“No,” he admitted after a moment. “Our alphabets are very different, Lightning.”

Well, yeah, she knew that, at least judging from what she could discern from the faded remnants of Pulsian civilization during her brief stint on the planet before Cocoon’s fall. “You went seven hundred years after the fall of Cocoon and never learned our alphabet?”

“Yes. Easily.” He was starting to sound annoyed, and Lightning backed down; if he wanted to live his life illiterate then that was just fine. He was practically a recluse anyway.

Her blue eyes followed him as he stepped away before disappearing into his room and her eyes traveled down to the heavy gunblade left in her hands. In the brief few battles she’d used it, she found it heavy enough to be a detriment – but Caius wielded it like it was _nothing_. With a flick of her wrist, she expanded the weapon – mostly. It seemed that yes, she would need to have Maqui give it a look; she forced the blade the rest of the way open with a scowl, looking it over. It was clear that Caius abused the thing, with the way some of the joints were either too loose to hold or jammed or some strange combination of the two that kept it from opening and _staying_ open all the way, and she didn’t _want_ to teach Caius how to be _deadly_ with a new weapon, but all of the ratty booklets on gunblade care in the world wouldn’t do any good if he wasn’t willing to learn Cocoon’s alphabet, and those only applied to the upkeep of the things, not how to avoid damaging them altogether. For such useful weapons, they had a lot of moving parts and were _fragile as hell_ in the wrong hands.

When the time came to depart and tackle their Focus – with the way Etro nudged her in the right direction occasionally, Lightning assumed that she would tell them when all preliminary objectives had been cleared – they would not have the luxury of taking broken things to Maqui for quick repair jobs. It would be unlikely that they’d have the things necessary to make repairs if they needed to.

So – where did that leave her?

She collapsed the Organyx once more before, briefly, returning to her book. The light that made it through the alcove’s window faded fast, however, and eventually she retreated into her room.

 

* * *

 

Predictably, Lightning kept Organyx with her the next day, although she’d made an unnecessarily big point of taking it with her down to New Bodhum when she wound up departing shortly before Caius and Yeul did. They followed the path that Caius usually took and wound up over by the Winding Way, a crystallized Cocoon visible on the horizon and a useless Time Gate in the crater below. He spoke to her only when she spoke to him first for a change, instead tracing out patterns on the log that they were seated on with his fingertips. Yeul briefly followed the paths with her eyes, captivated for precious few moments while she enjoyed her breakfast – the usual fruit that she had quickly come to love after much initial frustration in her attempts to deal with the thick skin. After that, her gaze was fixed on Cocoon for a long time and Caius did not ask what troubled her, although _something_ surely did.

She requested to wander off on her own when they were finished and he allowed it; for a change, Yeul respectfully bowed _her_ head to _him_ before retreating into the trees, and she couldn’t have been gone more than fifteen minutes before she returned, carrying more of the roughly orange-sized fruit (maximum fruitage achieved through the use of the top ruffle of her skirt as a makeshift basket of sorts). Caius gave her a slight smile and took one when offered; Yeul helped herself to one as well and set the third one aside. Making it through the thick skin by then was an easy feat for him, and he helped Yeul with hers after he peeled back the surface of his and set it aside, but paused when he heard faint footsteps.

He handed the fruit back to Yeul; one of his hands instinctively went to where the hilt of his sword _would_ have been, had it been with him rather than stuck in the stone of Valhalla. Instead, he let loose a pearl of white energy in the direction of the sound with a flick of his wrist and paused.

Metal scraping against metal, but not fast enough if the soft, slightly pained, masculine-sounding _‘oomph’_ was anything to go by.

Caius cast a glance over his shoulder, a familiar dark-haired man approaching, swords only drawn for a moment before he returned the smaller one to its rightful place within the larger one, and both of them to their rightful place on his back. Violet eyes narrowed and Caius cast another Ruin spell, which served as a far less effective method of warning when Noel _expected_ them and now knew that they weren’t as anywhere near as bad as what Caius could generally muster. The younger man called out to him – something about wanting to talk but hell if Caius cared – and in response, the Guardian stood, turned to face him, and let off another pearl of energy that this time exploded when it drew near to its target, knocking Noel back several feet. Yeul placed a hand on his arm as he raised it to cast again – something _nastier_ if Noel didn’t _back off_ , and he reconsidered as he watched Noel pull himself back to his feet and brush himself off. There were no visible injuries, for better or for worse, but to be fair if Caius had been trying to hurt him, he would have already.

Caius’s first instinct was to tell Noel to go away (except not as nicely as just _‘go away’_ ), but he fought it given that there was a child present and instead asked: “What do you want?” He did his best to keep his voice even and his gaze cold, and his arms dropped to his sides and his hands balled into fists.

“To _talk_. No more, no less.” Noel made a point to keep his hands where Caius could see them – and from the cautious way he approached his former mentor, the Guardian figured that he was doing his best not to make any sudden movements either.

Noel’s gaze flickered between him and Yeul briefly and the air between them was so thick with tension that one could probably cut it with a knife, but after a few moments Caius backed down and once again took a seat beside the blue-haired girl and it was dispelled as quickly as it had formed. Noel forced a tight-lipped smile to his features as he took a seat on a rock not far from Caius and Yeul; Caius scowled in response and started to wonder if Noel had anything to say that was worth his time. He was tempted to press him, _‘If you truly have something to say then go ahead,’_ but held his tongue.

But the hunter seemed intent to choose his words carefully; he was silent long enough for Caius’s steady gaze to leave him and for both the Guardian and the seeress to return to their fruit, both apparently content to keep their food for themselves – not that the hunter faulted them for it in any way. When Noel finally broke the silence, it was first with a thoughtful hum, and then, “So, uh, you’re a l’Cie?”

Caius glanced at Noel and gave a stiff nod of confirmation. “I don’t need you to persuade me to complete my Focus, Noel.”

“Not here for that,” Noel replied, briefly raising his hands defensively. Caius snorted in response – and the dark-haired man got the distinct feeling that this would be a lot more difficult than he originally anticipated. He cupped his jaw for a moment, letting the gears spin – and it was likely around that moment that he realized that he didn’t actually know that much about his old mentor, even after he’d spent nearly half of his life under Caius’s expert tutelage. “I just. Um…” The fact that Caius’s violet eyes were fixed on him all the while didn’t really help him think; beneath that icy stare, words crumbed away. “So, how’ve you been?”

Caius let out a somewhat unimpressed ‘ _hmph_ ,’ and if Noel’s gaze weren’t fixed on the Guardian’s visage, scouring the man for any hint of an emotion or what was going on inside his skull, then he would never have noticed the slight quirk of his eyebrow before he replied, “I’ve seen better days.” The Guardian’s gaze shifted briefly to Yeul, whom scooted a bit closer to him and regarded his former apprentice with a sort of quiet, cautious curiosity. He gave a moment’s pause – just long enough for it to become clear that she had no intention of speaking up herself, before turning his attention once more to their guest. “And you?”

Noel could tell that he wasn’t actually curious – or if he was, he hid it well enough that Noel couldn’t tell. “I’ve been—“ he swallowed in an attempt to bring moisture to his throat—“I’ve been good; thanks. Everyone’s pretty lively in town, and – well, you know, you ought to visit sometime, actually.”

Caius both metaphorically and literally turned his nose up at the invitation. “Noel. You know full well why I can’t do that.”

“Yeah, I do. But I mean, there are _people_ here; there’s barely a reason to live like a recluse.” He had to at least make an attempt to get through to him, for Lightning’s sake…

Yeul muttered something about how the seeress _must_ live away from people so that her powers would not be exploited, casting her gaze to the side – she didn’t seem particularly happy about it, but if that was the way things had to be, then...

Caius seemed satisfied that she could recall it so precisely; Noel only frowned and continued: “These people – they’re _good_. They don’t want to know the future or mess with time or hurt either of you; they want to live their lives. Everyone at the NORA house knows of you two already.”

Yes, they did, didn’t they. His eyebrows lowered a bit, and Noel stumbled over his next words; he briefly wished Caius were easier to read. Other than subtle nuances (that, had he not been his apprentice at one time, he wouldn’t have noticed) the Guardian gave away nothing of what went on inside that head of his. And knowing that Caius (once? Still?) planned to _destroy_ everything just to ‘save’ Yeul, it didn’t do much to make Noel comfortable around the taller man. He swallowed, shuffling in his seat a bit and looking away, cupping his chin with one hand as he continued: “Lightning talks about you sometimes, and – well, they’re kind of afraid of you.”

The Guardian smirked, although it was fleeting. _Good._ “Fear breeds hate. I am used to it, and they have no reason to like me.” Caius had no reason to like or trust them, either, apart from Noel’s word – not that he didn’t trust the dark-haired man, but he could be awfully naïve…

“But the thing is, they don’t have a reason to hate you, either, Caius.” Noel slowly rose to his feet, gesturing toward New Bodhum. “Everything that Lightning’s said about you, as far as I know, is absolutely correct—” Although Noel refrained from naming those things with Yeul present; if she needed to know, chances are she did already—“But thing is, you’ve done some bad things, sure, but that doesn’t mean you’re a bad _person_. I’m proof of that. You took me under your wing ‘cause I wanted to get stronger. You had plenty of chances to kill me while Serah and I were traveling through time, and you didn’t. And—”

At that, Caius rose, eyes narrowed. “That’s enough,” he said, voice firm.

But Noel continued on: “ _Yeul_ is proof of that. You’ve protected her – _them_ – for centuries, Caius.”

“Because I must.” The real statements were apparent from his tone alone: _‘Because I am her Guardian. Because Yeul is all that matters. Because she deserves better.’_

“Because _you have a good heart_ ,” Noel insisted, taking a step forward and meeting his gaze levelly. “Because you’re her Guardian, sure, but because you have a good heart, too. You care about her Caius; I’ve seen it and—”

“ _Enough_ ,” Caius said, his voice finally rising. He seized the front of Noel’s shirt, pulling the now-distressed blue-eyed man forward a bit. “I haven’t the time for your lectures. None of this is new – and none of it bears _repeating_.” May as well have said, _‘Silly Noel, how dare you imply I’m a good person. Look at me, I wear all black and plan(ned?) to destroy everything’_ instead. Noel gritted his teeth in response. “So if you have something more to say—” At that, Caius shoved Noel backward, sending him stumbling toward the cliff’s edge—“do it with your _swords_.”

The Guardian raised a hand to cast a spell – any spell – but something inside of him held him back and he cursed quietly. Then, going along with it, he lashed out _physically –_ his moment’s pause, however, had given Noel enough time to draw his swords and block Caius’s punch. The Guardian pulled back before giving Noel a swift kick in the side, sending him flying (briefly) sideways, away from the cliff’s edge. He was only dimly aware that Yeul was watching, wide-eyed with her hands covering her mouth as if she’d never seen Caius get violent before, as if she hadn’t seen Valhalla in her visions or known what feats of cruelty her immortal Guardian was capable of. Perhaps the man he was in _her_ era had been known to show mercy, had had more patience – but he was older than him by _centuries_ and she knew it. Even in the face of Caius’s fury, Noel refused to go on the offensive, merely using his swords as a shield and digging his feet into the ground to keep himself from being forced backwards too far – impressive, considering Caius’s superhuman strength and magical abilities.

“Don’t have much to say _now_ , do you?” he growled. Noel regarded him with silent defiance.

Perhaps it was strange, but Noel could tell a lot more about Caius when he was _fighting_ rather than when he was _speaking_. Sure, he spoke prettily enough and his brand of charisma was such that if he wanted to manipulate people to do his bidding, he probably could – but there was always a way to _hide_ with words. There was always a way to sugarcoat things, through precise diction and meticulous syntax – but when he lashed out, everything came bubbling to the surface. He hit _hard_ – harder than he had during their duel before Caius left him and Yeul alone in the Dying World, harder than his past incarnation in 200AF Oerba had, with that slow-burning anger and dedication to duty; harder than their brief fight in the Void Beyond after he and Serah had gotten separated and he wished to be rid of a thorn in his side. There was something that ran deep, something he felt the desperate need to _cover_ , be it through schemes or aggression or cold, hard silence.

Hurt?

No, deeper. Noel couldn’t place his finger on it exactly, not while he was doing his best to weather the storm and definitely not after Caius caught him off guard and his fist collided with the side of his face. The hunter suppressed his building anger only because he knew it wouldn’t do any good, and when Caius raised his hand to attempt to cast a spell again – _if he could_ – Yeul finally spoke.

“Please stop—!”

And everything froze. And everything from the past two minutes or so seemed immediately dropped, forgotten. Caius relaxed and stepped away, immediately honoring the child’s wishes despite the burning anger behind his eyes and the way his teeth were bared in a snarl, and Noel lowered his swords before putting them away. After making sure they were fixed securely in place on his back, he rubbed the side of his face – no blood, but he’d surely have a bruise, possibly a nasty black eye. He looked sadly toward Yeul before bowing his head respectfully. “I’m sorry you had to see that, Yeul. If he’s not willing to listen, I’ll just go. But you know – invitation’s still open. We’d love to have you two.” And he started away.

She smiled a bit and when Caius kneeled before her in similar apology, she patted his head.

Yeul turned her gaze to her Guardian with a slight frown. Her hand briefly stroked his soft, thick hair for a few moments more before she let it trail down, behind his ear, before eventually coming to rest on the side of his face. She brought her free hand up to cup the other side and held his head in her hands. It didn’t take long for him to look up at her as she wished, although he deliberately cast his gaze to the side after a few moments.

“Caius,” she began, getting his attention long enough for emeralds to lock with amethysts and rendering his efforts to _hide_ the emotions churning just below the surface through lack of eye contact for naught. Even if no one else did, Yeul found it a simple matter to read Caius, but then she – and this extended to all her incarnations since he had become a Guardian centuries ago – had been practically raised by him. “If it counts for anything, _I_ believe you are good, as well.”

His lips parted a bit, as if to speak – as if to _object_ – but whatever words those had been died on his lips quickly.

He tried not to sound irritated, or disappointed – and it was obvious that it took some effort. “Thank you, Yeul.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Easily the weakest chapter I've written so far but bah, transitions. Don't mean I don't like it, though. Whatcha gonna do in the end? :P  
> Thanks to everyone for their continued support!


	11. Frayed Ends

When they arrived back at the house in the late afternoon, Lightning was hogging the alcove with a white blanket draped around her shoulders (well, more accurately, wrapped around her entire body; that, along with the sunlight filtering in, must have made for a cozy little way to relax). She cast a glance to him and closed the book she was reading when he entered close behind Yeul; he met her gaze before he made a beeline for his room. Yeul was out of the room shortly after he entered, a change of clothes identical to her usual garb save for some slightly more faded colors in her hands as she made her way to the bathroom, and he was left there with his thoughts as he stripped off his armor piece by piece, leather belts and metal falling away to reveal the clothing underneath. His boots went, too, and all of it was somewhat-neatly tucked out of the way before he stepped to his window, with his slowly-withering red flower (needed new water? He’d only just changed it…) and Yeul’s Oracle Drive on the windowsill to either side of him. His fingertips traced the designs etched in an old comb that they’d retrieved along with the Drive, idly, and he stopped as soon as he caught himself.

He was dimly aware of Lightning’s footsteps on the floor as she approached, coming to a stop just outside his doorway. And for a long few moments, she just stood there, her eyes burning holes through him. But as the silence between them started to become uncomfortable, he started to get antsy; Caius shifted his weight and cast a glance over to Lightning and – that was a mistake.

Their eyes locked, and Lightning seemed to take that as an invitation to enter. Despite the fact that she was smaller than he was in pretty much every aspect, she still made for a somewhat intimidating sight when she was angry – and though her expression masked it well, her eyes gave it all away. Not even in Valhalla had he seen such a fire beyond those blue depths – and it quickly became apparent that her eyes imitated the sky in _all_ its moods. There was a storm churning just beneath the surface, and he was directly in its path.

He’d just have to weather it. He dug himself into this grave, didn’t he? Caius tore his eyes away from Lightning’s as her lips parted so she could say, “You’re a _real_ piece of work, Ballad.”

As if this was news. People seemed to enjoy parroting to him what he already knew today… Caius did his best to suppress a smirk. “I will take that as a compliment.”

“I wouldn’t take pride in lashing out at someone who was trying to be friendly. God knows no one else’d give you the time of day – and he comes back banged up. What the _hell_ is your problem?”

“He is far too naïve to help _me_.” If only because he had no idea what Caius actually needed.

“I agree. He thinks you can be helped at all.” _Precisely_. And with her next words, Lightning raised her voice: “Look. _I_ frankly don’t give a crap whether you live or die alone whenever that time comes for you so long as this—” She tapped her chest, right where her brand was just barely visible above the neckline of her t-shirt—“gets done, and so long as you don’t drag the rest of us down with you when you take a dive off of the damn deep end. _I_ don’t give a crap if you’re miserable for the rest of eternity; that’s on you. But Noel does care, and if you lay a hand on him – or any of them – again, you’ll answer to _me_. And it won’t be quick or painless, either.” Maybe she’d toss him to some starving monsters, lock him in a cage with them and have them pick his bones clean… A threat against Yeul was just barely on the tip of her tongue – but she was a sweet kid and didn’t deserve to get caught in the crossfire. And she knew for a fact that that would be a sure way to shoot any chances that Caius would work with her for _five minutes_ to hell and back, and maybe even get herself (or even the others) killed in the process, depending on exactly how foul of a mood Caius was in at any given moment.

“It won’t be an issue.” No – so long as he’d learned his lesson. But knowing Noel….

“It _better_ not be. Ungrateful bastard. Give me a _break_.” She stepped away, then paused to continue—“By the way, would it kill you to make an effort not to _break_ that gunblade? Maqui just keeps finding more things wrong with it, thanks to you!”

And to that, he answered with silence; Lightning slammed the door behind her.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the evening, too, was spent in silence, with Caius and Lightning not speaking and Yeul only speaking to either of them when absolutely necessary. It wasn’t pleasant – but nor was it unpleasant per se. It was just a fact, and was probably for the best until all parties cooled off a little. Dreamless sleep that provided little rest at all claimed Caius for the first half of the night, and he woke up with Yeul curled up against his back, apparently seeking the sort of warmth that the blanket they shared (well, were supposed to share; it had wound up wrapped completely around Yeul at some point but Caius didn’t actually have any complaints about that) couldn’t provide. Her presence alone smoothed down a few of his rough edges and ragged nerves; the soft sound of her breathing as she slept beside him helped to quiet his mind enough to rest.

There was little he could do, however, about the feeling in the pit of his stomach that made him just about sick, the same one that held his heart in a vise and squeezed and tied his throat into a knot. The same one that kept him awake, that took his thoughts to a time that from here was centuries in the future but to him in the not-so-distant past – of saving Yeul, Noel, and their group of friends from a Strigoi, of training Noel in the art of the sword and taking him formally as his apprentice, of begging the dark-haired man to kill him and tasting the disappointment when he _couldn’t._ Of his and Lightning’s war in Valhalla, two equals locked in battle, fighting for redemption and for salvation – and perhaps, just a little, their own selfish desires, underneath it all. Perhaps even simply because they were compelled to, because their respective fates demanded that they be at odds.

And more recently, of the day just passed – of Noel refusing to strike him even as Caius took his anger out on him with fists and feet and magic incantations, of Noel making it clear that he was making some sort of attempt to extend an olive branch in Caius’s direction, of this Yeul’s professed conviction in his inherent goodness (an attitude that was surely shared by most – but surely not all – of the Yeuls he’d encountered and cared for over the centuries, for better or for worse).

He felt Yeul shift against him and his eyes snapped closed – but he didn’t level his breathing enough to create the illusion of sleep, not quite, and she pulled him loosely into a half-embrace as she settled down again. He rested one battle-roughened hand over hers, slowly stroking her palm with his thumb.

And like that, he was left to his thoughts again.

Yeul, in all her countless incarnations, was responsible for keeping him grounded just as much as they were for the slow, but steady, deterioration of his mental state. He knew this, and accepted it, and carried on for her only because it was all he knew how to do (if only because _she_ was all that gave meaning to years that long ago he’d stopped consciously counting, although the number was slowly ticking upwards in the back of his mind, always), and even if he knew more, then it would be all that _mattered_ , would be the _only_ constant in the ever-shifting landscape of Gran Pulse over the centuries. He was her Guardian – sworn to serve and protect her for, well, originally, however long he _lasted_ , but now until the end of time; he was her guardian, sworn to save her from her ultimate fate. That was all that mattered. All that could be salvaged. All that could be repaired, all that he actually had the power to _do_ anything about, if he tried and wished and believed with every fiber of his being – which he did, but at fourteen-hundred-sixty-seven he was already run ragged. He only hoped he could hold out for her sake until he hit twenty-one-hundred-sixty-four… _If_ the world’s fate remained as it was, to end with a whimper seven hundred years after the Day of Ragnarok.

He had nothing – _no one_ – else.

Paddra as a nation was gone; all of his (former) friends and (former) family had long since passed on. His people were simultaneously the ones to condemn he and Yeul to live alone (for Yeul’s own good, _of course_ …) and to hate him for taking her away when the time came. He was a living testament to the fact that human beings were not meant to live forever, whether a cruel goddess thought so or not… To continue living was without meaning, but despite his longings, Caius had no choice in the matter, and somehow _even less_ than no choice now that Etro had apparently split the Heart between him and Lightning so that it would be _even harder_ to destroy permanently. She either was truly cruel or truly had no idea what she was doing, and that was the reason – insofar as he was concerned – that he cursed her name with all his being.

He squeezed the seeress’s hand in his in an effort to find some comfort. It worked a little, and while Yeul stirred, she did not wake.

There wasn’t a damn thing he wouldn’t sacrifice for her. He’d give his body. He’d give his heart. He’d give his soul. He’d give the lives of millions upon millions of people. He’d give the life of a goddess. And if it meant he had to sacrifice his humanity to face his resolution, then _so be it_. Mark him down in the bestiaries; it didn’t matter in the end. He’d do anything, as long as _Yeul lived._ She could hate him for all he cared. But, still…

When at last sleep began to eat away at the fringes of his awareness, the moon had reached its apex in the sky and its silver light filtered in through the window, casting his and Yeul’s forms in a new type of shadow.

 

* * *

 

The next few days at the NORA house, life carried on as normal, and with the help of some good old-fashioned, well-timed former l’Cie magic, Noel healed up just fine. They all made a point to avoid asking what had happened because honestly all of them already knew that Caius was behind the bruises and the black eye, and his existence was one that they would all frankly rather forget. Instead, they turned their attention to happier things: to the days growing longer as May subsided into June (which, of course, would likely only mean that the days would only get _hotter_ ), to the impending summer solstice – only two and a half weeks away (or so; no one was actually counting). Serah finally got time off when school concluded for the summer, to be picked up again in September, perfect for spending time with Snow and Lightning and all the rest, although it was apparent in the way she looked at Lightning that she expected her sister to be leaving soon, although Lightning made it clear that she didn’t even know _where_ to begin with their Focus beyond a very vague and general idea of its components.

Up north, even further up than Oerba seemed like a safe place to start, but…

Best not to think about it. Even after this much time had passed since Valhalla and since Etro branded them, Lightning’s brand had not changed a bit, more or less confirming that the goddess was too merciful to damn them to the fate of so many Cocoon and Pulse l’Cie whom had failed their Foci (or had never been given a Focus at all). No, she and Caius had all the time in the world, so it was best to make use of that. There was so much lost time that could never be regained – three years of complete absence and _even more_ time before Cocoon’s fall, in fact – and Lightning wasn’t keen on letting go again so soon.

The two sisters stood on the shore close enough to the water that when the waves lapped at the shore it washed over their bare feet, sucking sand out from under them when it receded and burying their toes a little when it came back in. Lightning examined a mostly-whole fan shell in her hand, streaked with blue and yellow over white, quietly recalling those days years ago when they’d take walks down the shoreline of Bodhum and examine shells – never take them home, of course; they had far too many already – and occasionally turn one over to find a tiny crab-like fal’Cie. They never thought of them as fal’Cie, of course – it was difficult to comprehend how, when one included the smaller fal’Cie with simpler tasks than the ones performed by fal’Cie Kujata or Carbuncle or Phoenix, there had been just as many fal’Cie as humans in their little bubble, tending to Cocoon and making sure that the people were completely and absolutely comfortable. It was a far cry from Gran Pulse, where the fal’Cie tended to the planet itself for the most part, humans be damned unless there was some task required of them – and even that era was in the past. Now they ignored people altogether.

It brought a smile to her face. That sort of simple happiness – there was just one more obstacle before it would finally be within reach again.

She waited until the water came back up to wash over their feet and dipped the shell in the foam before it receded and she straightened once more. It was about that time that she also realized that Serah had been talking and she’d just kind of zoned out – a wave of embarrassment hit her and she fought to keep her expression neutral as she said, “Sorry, I—could you repeat that?”

Serah just smiled at her. “Nevermind; it wasn’t important. Hey, Lightning – do you wanna go with us across the bay sometime? There’s a pretty up-and-coming town on the other side and we were thinking about arranging a trip over to see what it’s like.” She gestured across to the landmass visible in the distance, and when Lightning squinted she thought she could make out the buildings of the town that Serah was talking about, but it was more likely to be the light reflecting strangely off the water than anything else given the immense distance.

“I’d love to. When?”

“Toward the middle or the end of next week. We’ll probably stay over there for a day – just to see how it is, y’know.”

“Sounds good. I could use some time away from that house,” Lightning replied with a laugh before holding out the shell to Serah. Her sister turned it over a few times, letting her fingers run over the surface of the shell and admiring how _smooth_ the underside was to the touch. “Reminds me of those shells we used to find on the shore.”

“Yeah, though those were all whole—” Serah smiled—“I guess the fal’Cie kept them that way, huh? I prefer the ones like this, though,” she continued, handing the shell back to Lightning. “They have more character.”

“They do, don’t they.”

They continued down the shore toward the rickety makeshift dock, talking and laughing and smiling and reminiscing. Memories of Cocoon, memories of simpler times and of happier days – memories of their parents (more of their mother than their father, and they silently agreed to purposefully omit a few events from their trip down memory lane), memories of school, memories of the fireworks and how the show evolved over the years… So much was lost that could never be regained, but at least they had the chance to start over and bridge the gap that had grown between them over time – a feat that years ago would have been daunting, but now was practically nothing.

It was _almost_ as if nothing had changed, although the unfortunate truth of the matter was that, frankly, everything had changed. Oh well. There was nothing that could be done about that now and the best they could do is look forward to a brighter future.

 

* * *

 

If nothing else, Yeul kept him company during the day. There wasn’t really a whole lot different on the paths they followed, and they never strayed so far from the house that they would not be able to return by sundown, but it was certainly better than being cooped up all day. The air pressed down on him, but it always did and these days he’d gotten used to it. But what weighed on his shoulders now wasn’t the humid air or the heat or even Yeul on the occasion that he carried her on his shoulders to allow her to reach something or simply because she got tired of walking, but the thoughts of the previous night, of the previous day. Yeul cast him knowing looks every once in a while even while she busied herself with fruit or with the ladybugs that sometimes decided to land on her or with her own thoughts, and though he occasionally glanced back his eyes were more often fixed on his eidolith and the soft light in its core as if Bahamut would be willing to provide some answers from within the crystal.

But his eidolon was silent. To be fair, no direct questions were asked, and he knew that Bahamut had to be physically present (be he manifested as a partner or as a part of Caius himself) for them to communicate in any meaningful manner, but props for trying.

After a while, Yeul pushed a flower into his hands – and his mind skipped straight to 200AF and all of the flowers he once collected with that Yeul and he couldn’t kick himself quickly enough to keep his expression neutral – but this Yeul knew already that he was centuries older than the Caius she’d first met had been, and that one wasn’t coming back, although he’d never outright told her himself. He wondered at first if he was really that different from the man he had been in 3AF when he first figured out that she knew.

All signs pointed to yes.

He cradled the flower in his hands, the blossom resting against the crystal eye while the stem wound up pinched between two fingers as he twirled it slowly to examine all of its angles. The plant offered no answers, either, its soft, white petals merely offering him unpleasant reminders of a Yeul whom for him was long past but, given that even as one of Her “l’Cie,” Etro had not opened her gates to him, he was destined to meet again if the future had not changed too drastically as of yet. A Yeul who passed just shy of her sixteenth birthday ( _of course_ he’d bite at bait dangled in front of him – maybe she’d live _this_ time – like an obedient little thing, if it gave him hope enough to carry on – but now he only thought himself a fool for it) _._

“Caius?”

He looked up.

“What kind of person is Noel?”

“In three words: naïve, determined, and kind-hearted.” To a fault. He would have made a fine Guardian if only he had killed Caius and taken the Heart for himself, but perhaps in hindsight he shouldn’t have expected something like that from someone born at the very end of days and destined to be the last surviving human in the Dying World, long after the final Yeul passed on and long after Caius left for Valhalla.

She hummed thoughtfully at his answer. “And you hate him?”

He laughed dryly, and the sound seemed to catch Yeul off guard a bit. In that moment, he quietly realized the key difference between him and the person he’d been three years after the fall – he was a sight more cynical. “I’m not inclined to… _hatred_.” Not unless your name happens to be Etro and you just happened to curse him with immortality and doom Yeul to die and be reborn over and over before she’d truly had a chance to live, but you know.

“Is that the truth?”

“I would not lie to you.”

“Then… you attacked him for no reason?” Her eyebrows knit together and she frowned and Caius wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and squeeze all of her worries out of her.

“Perhaps it was… A bit unwarranted.”

“Perhaps?”

“… It was certainly unwarranted.” Not completely, in Caius’s eyes – but Yeul was as convinced of his inherent goodness as Noel seemed to be, so if he told her that he rejected the very premise of that idea, then…

_‘You’re a_ real _piece of work, Ballad.’_

Yes… Lightning was right. Honestly, he’d prefer to keep it that way, but…

“Then should we apologize?”

“You have nothing to apologize for.”

“Then should _you_ apologize?”

Caius considered the question quietly, casting his gaze toward Yeul for a fleeting moment. And he answered the question with silence and wished to himself for the comfortable silence that he and Yeul usually shared, wished for the return of happier days (though they were surely lost forever at this point). “I cannot leave your side.”

“Then take me with you.”

“I cannot do that, either.”

“Is Noel dishonest?”

“No, but he is naïve. People, they—” he cut himself off when he realized how Yeul was looking at him, how the look in her eyes made her look like a puppy that had just been kicked – and he knew she only let this expression show through because she knew that it was a _sure_ way to quiet any of his protests, but Caius still offered: “Those are the rules. Regardless of good they claim to be, I cannot let you go.”

“You won’t even give them a chance?” And then came the reminder that this Yeul, at the moment, was but nine years old – tears formed in her eyes and Caius wondered if he’d said anything to offend her or whether they were just crocodile tears (most likely) but either way the effect was the same. He returned his eidolith to his brand and reached out for her with his now-free hand, wiping her tears away. She wrapped one hand loosely around his wrist and held his hand to the side of her face with the other. “Please, Caius. I will never ask anything more of you again. These people know little of Farseers or seeresses and they don’t _have_ to know. I promise not to speak of the things I see—so— _please_ ,” she begged, nuzzling into his hand and he wasn’t sure if she was exploiting what she knew was his weakness or genuinely needed him to wipe her tears away but it didn’t matter; as her Guardian, Caius would bend to her will always. “I want to meet them.”

His words failed him for several moments before he managed, “I will consider it.”

“Thank you, Caius.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Progress!  
> I appreciate everyone who's given this fic kudos -- or even a glance for that matter, hah. Tell your friends! And if you're feeling up to it, I always like comments (and [reviews](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11182623/11/Of-Masks-and-Mirrors), and comments on [Tumblr](http://two--pair.tumblr.com); anon enabled everywhere)! :D I am not only out of school after tomorrow but I passed 100k in my word document a few days ago, so pretty hype for that.


	12. Building Bridges

Lightning stacked and restacked the fake money in her possession, counting and recounting it whenever a purchase or trade was made. It was about their fifth go around the board so naturally no clear victor had been decided yet, but Yuj was pulling ahead quickly, in no small part due to the fact he’d purchased some of the most expensive property on the board. Lightning was close behind, followed by Snow; Serah was last among them only because of her reluctance to buy anything apart from rail roads and the fact that she had, unluckily enough, landed on _‘Go To Jail’_ twice. Out of pity, Lightning offered her some of the property _she_ owned, but Serah turned it down. Lebreau and Maqui watched the game unfold on the outskirts of the group while Noel was tucked safely away in the back-most room of the house and lost to the oblivion of sleep.

“Yuj, I’m going to send _you_ to jail if you land on _‘Free Parking’_ one more time,” Serah mumbled, earning a snicker from all the other players. “For real. You think I won’t? I’ll _drag_ you there myself!”

“I’m just really lucky this time around; don’t take it out on _me_ ,” he replied, a smile teasing at his lips.

“He warned you, Serah,” Lightning put in, setting down her stack of fake, stupidly colorful money.

“Yeah, I know – but he didn’t warn me about his dumb _luck_!”

“Dice _must_ be rigged,” Snow agreed jokingly. “Only explanation, isn’t it?”

“Maybe we should have played checkers instead,” Lightning remarked, crossing her arms and sitting back and smirking a little at the face Serah made in response.

“You say that like I’m a sore loser.”

“You know I don’t mean it like that.” With that, Lightning nudged her sister, pushing her shoulder lightly. “C’mon. It’s your turn.”

The game continued onwards from there and Serah managed to get her hands on some property but by their thirteenth time around the board, a clear victor had emerged. Thankfully it wasn’t Yuj, so Serah didn’t have to curse his luck anymore, but certainly the fact that Snow managed to force Lightning into bankruptcy (in which she split what she had between Serah and Snow, and they both proceeded to tag-team Yuj and take him off the board as well) through slow, patient development of what he had rather than simply trying to buy up every square on the board was both somewhat impressive and somewhat disheartening. But hey – a game was a game was a game. Afterwards they all sat back and called it good, Yuj starting to put away the game without organizing the money or the cards that went with them (that would assuredly be Gadot’s job next time he joined them for a session).

These sorts of lazy, peaceful afternoons were the sort that everyone had come to get used to and come to enjoy. They wound on and on without end and it was a blessing that they didn’t; every moment was precious, and for once none of them had much to worry about. There was the matter of Caius, of course, and the Focus that Etro had given him and Lightning – but both he and it were far from the front of anyone’s mind at any given moment. Once the game was put away, Lebreau fixed up some cocktails for all of them (and Lightning had to remind herself that yes, Serah _was_ old enough to drink now) before plunking herself down at the end of the couch beside Yuj.

And they dissolved into small talk and banter and what-have-you, their voices set to the backdrop of distant waves and people going about their business around town outside. Snow invited Lightning to go parasailing – to which she vehemently refused not only on account of some of the horror stories she recalled from her youth but because she lacked a swimsuit altogether at the moment. Serah poked fun at her refusal, and it was Lightning’s turn to get defensive, and things went on like that for a while and though maybe one or more of them had raised their voices a little no one could say that they were really or truly angry with anyone else. And that was just the way that it ought to be.

Lightning paused a beat when she caught something in the corner of her eye; she looked in its direction but it had vanished. She was about to dismiss it as her mind playing tricks on her but Snow had dropped his line of conversation across the coffee table with Yuj and was now craning his neck in an effort to get a better look around the corner at whatever had been there just seconds before. Serah leaned on him and seemed to be trying to do the same; Lightning took another sip of the pinkish red cocktail in her glass before setting it back on the table and rising, pausing once more than she caught a voice just outside – _“You’re the one that wanted to come here” –_ before the source of the disruption peeked around the corner once more – a young, short, blue-haired girl with knowing emerald eyes.

Everyone save her and Serah took rather kindly to this development, greeting Yeul warmly. Lebreau held a hand out to the seeress before Lightning called the dark-haired woman’s and shook her head when her attention was caught; if Yeul was nearby then it was extremely likely that Caius was. Guaranteed, in fact. The elder Farron sister rose from her seat and Yuj and Lebreau pulled their legs in to open a path for her to get around the table. The seeress took a step back but otherwise regarded her in a friendly manner, her hands clasped in front of her.

Lightning was tempted to place a hand on the child’s shoulder, but resisted the urge. “Is Caius with you?”

Yeul cast her glance toward the house’s entrance; at the bottom of the steps leading up to the house was the black-clad man she had inquired about. The banter faded away until, gradually, room fell silent.

“Did you two need something?”

“Noel invited us here two days ago,” Yeul explained. “And I wanted… I was curious about the—village?” A glance toward Caius, who slowly shook his head and mouthed a word to Yeul, whom quickly corrected herself: “Town.” She smiled and seemed proud of herself; Lightning was tempted to tell her that as far as Cocoonites were concerned, there was no difference. But why rain on a child’s parade when you could, you know, not do that?

Lightning hummed and forced a smile. “Well if you wanted to actually _see_ Noel, he’s asleep right now. But you’re free to make yourself at home.” At least it proved then to be easy to take advantage of this Yeul’s natural curiosity to realize her full potential as a bargaining chip (well, she supposed that was a little rude of her to think; Yeul was a child with feelings and thoughts of her own and it wasn’t her fault that her Guardian was horribly inclined to violence…), to keep Noel and Serah (relatively) out of harm’s way… Lightning turned to Serah and reached out. “Would you hand me my glass?”

Serah complied and Lightning stepped away; Yeul took her place and slowly but surely made her way over to Serah before plunking herself down in Lightning’s seat. It was a little bit overwhelming – being around so many people after it had just been her and Caius for so long, but she smiled at them all nonetheless. Serah beside her placed a hand on her shoulder and Yeul smiled at her. She was content to wait until most had returned to the conversations that they had been holding prior to her arrival, content to listen in rather than become an active participant until in short order Snow got her attention with: “Hey. You’re that ‘Yeul’ Lightning told us about, aren’t you? The seeress?”

She cast her gaze downward as if ashamed, then smiled up at him. If she and Serah were the same – and they _must_ have been; she dared not speak of the visions that proved this, but she definitely was – then this man who held her hand in his and spoke to her gently, as Caius did to her (no, differently; but similarly enough that surely it didn’t matter?) must be…?

“I am,” she replied in a low voice. “Don’t let Caius know that you know. He might take me away.”

He gave her a thumbs up; she wasn’t sure she understood the gesture but she was sure that she would soon enough. “Gotcha,” he replied. “Noel invited you over then? You friends?”

Yeul paused to consider this. “I am not acquainted with him personally, but Caius is. But he does not seem like a bad person.” Perhaps, with time, she could _become_ friends with him. These exceptional circumstances lent themselves to that, didn’t they? The seeress covered her mouth with her hands to shield her growing smile from prying eyes, and she squirmed a little where she sat; before, she thought she would only dream of meeting these two, whom she’d seen in her visions, up close and personal – only dreamed that she’d ever get to speak with them, and she felt a little bad about pushing her Guardian until he gave in, but if she hadn’t she might’ve _never_ had this chance.

“Not bad? Noel’s great,” Snow replied, placing a hand on Serah’s shoulder, and she leaned into his touch until he removed his hand and instead pulled her into a loose half-embrace. “Kept Serah safe even when I couldn’t. You’ll like ‘im.”

“I’m sure, if I get the chance to get to know him,” Yeul replied. “And Caius owes him an apology.”

“He sure does,” Serah mumbled, casting her gaze to the entryway – the best she could do; both Caius and her sister were speaking somewhere out of sight. “Is that why you two came here?”

“It was my excuse for convincing Caius to bring me,” Yeul admitted, her face turning a light shade of pink. “I am not sure if he intends to actually apologize.”

“Well, if you can get him to bring you here, then I’m sure you can get him to apologize,” Serah said with a smile. Yeul replied with a stiff nod. “By the way,” the blue-eyed woman continued, “I don’t think we were ever formally introduced, were we? I know you—” pause, and Yeul knew that she took it because it was perhaps inaccurate to say that she knew _her_ specifically—“I’m sure you know already, but – I’m Serah, Lightning’s sister.”

“And I’m Snow Villiers. Serah’s fiancé.” _Oh._ The blond man held his free hand out to Yeul, and she took it. His hands were so much bigger than hers, and she marveled at it for a second before, after a firm shake and a smile, he pulled away. “Those two over there are Yuj and Lebreau.”

Upon hearing their names, the two NORA members in question left their little bubble and waved at Yeul. The seeress smiled and followed the precedent that the couple had set: “I am Yeul,” she said, gesturing to herself. “And Caius Ballad is my Guardian. It’s a pleasure to meet all of you.”

Yuj gave a smile and a nod while Lebreau spoke: “Same to you, Yeul. Hey, are you thirsty?”

“What do you have?”

“Water, grapefruit juice, and milk.”

Yeul considered the options for a moment before answering: “Water, please.”

 

* * *

 

Etro’s champion paced on the steps for several moments with crossed arms before letting out an exasperated sigh. “What do you think you’re doing here?”

Lightning placed a hand on her hip, paying no little attention to the conversation – the introductions – going on inside the house. Her gaze fell on the taller man before her – though for once she didn’t have to look up at him on account of the fact that she’d come to a halt several steps above where he stood. It was nice to be on more equal footing, she may have noted if this were a visit on more friendly terms; alas, it was not, and he met her gaze levelly, his expression (frustratingly enough) revealing nothing.

“Yeul requested to pay you a visit.” And, well, Yeul requested that he apologize… Several times over the course of the previous day. The dark-haired man, however, was nowhere to be seen, and Caius wasn’t about to ascend the steps without first being invited. He knew how he was regarded in Lightning’s ring of friends – though thankfully that stigma did not seem to extend to his charge as well. “I have no interest in hurting you – or your sister – or your friends.”

Lightning seemed to relax a little after looking him over – nothing seemed to imply he was being dishonest, but…

“Yeah? Just like you had no interest in hurting Noel, right?”

“I was not thinking clearly.”

“Do you ever think clearly?” Caius shifted his weight in response and scoffed, brushing it off and biting back the urge to wince. His armor protected him from a lot of things but Lightning’s silver tongue was not on that list. She opened her mouth to speak again before turning away and taking one long sip of her cocktail. She did not meet Caius’s gaze as she continued, “Look at what you were prepared to do for one girl. I mean, that’s kind of insanity.”

“You would do the same if it was someone _you_ cared about,” he accused, standing a little straighter.

“No,” Lightning replied. “Because I don’t let my passions win out over my _reason_.”

“Centuries of watching it, over and over, and knowing you are powerless to stop it might change your mind.” His eyes fell to her chest briefly. What would Etro do with _that_ once they were finished…?

“I hope I’ll never have to find out one way or another. Look, Caius, if you really don’t mean any harm, then prove it. I don’t buy it, and I’m sure no one else in the house will, either.”

He was tempted to snip back at her with, _‘Because you’ve turned them against me,’_ but instead he just scowled and replied quietly: “Fine, then. If you want me to prove my intentions to you – then may I come in?”

That gave her some pause; so many words jumped to her lips in that moment and all of them she bit back – _stop and think, Farron_. The most beneficial course of action would be…

“Fine.” She backed up the steps a bit, narrowing her eyes. “Keep in mind that we _all_ know how to fight here.”

The corners of his lips twitched a bit, as if she had cracked a joke. Lightning supposed that, in a way, the idea that any of them posed an actual threat to him was somehow amusing. Which it shouldn’t have been, given that he knew what she (and Serah, and Noel) were capable of in battle, and even if she was unarmed, Lightning had been trained in hand-to-hand combat during her time in the military. And so she scoffed and moved aside and slowly, cautiously, quietly, Caius ascended the steps. Lightning had to fight the temptation to tug him down and pour the remainder of her drink, ice and all, down the back of his armor – just as a warning. She was almost certain that she’ regret not doing it later.

She followed him up the steps in short order, and did not miss the pause in the room when the others caught sight of him, although they did their best to cover it up and return to their (now more hushed) conversations. Lightning noted how his eyes followed Lebreau as she made her way back from the kitchen with a mini bottle of water, which she promptly handed to Yeul – and the dark-haired woman seemed to be making a conscious effort not to pay any mind to it; Serah and Snow also both avoided looking in Caius’s direction.

Lightning rejoined the group, plunking herself in the corner of the couch between where Yuj and Yeul sat. Caius’s gaze fell briefly upon her for a moment and his expression was mostly unreadable, but he seemed relaxed, for the most part – and Lightning recalled the fact that he trusted that she meant no ill will toward Yeul but couldn’t help but wonder how much. Surely not enough to keep him from pulling her away should any of them make a move that he disapproved of, and certainly that would not be with a simple slap on the wrist. Caius remained silent, his gaze roaming over the group for a moment before a smirk graced his lips, just briefly – an expression of approval, perhaps, at least for the moment. He didn’t speak, but he didn’t need to; his introduction had already been made _for_ him and he wasn’t exactly a man that anyone who met him would soon forget.

“Hey, Yeul,” Yuj began, and his voice immediately cut through the tension hanging in the air and dissipated some of it. Always the master of volume control, Yuj must have been purposefully including the whole group when he spoke next, instead of using a voice more suited for one-on-one conversation. “Would you like to hear a story?”

The child nodded her head and unscrewed the cap from her water bottle before bringing it to her lips. Yuj stood and separated himself from the rest of the group so he was more or less standing in the middle of the room proper, where he had room to move around and gesture. Lightning quickly scooted over to fill the gap he left on the couch, her eyes focused on the blue-haired man; everyone, even Caius, seemed to focus in on him and it only took a few seconds for Serah and Snow’s conversation between themselves to conclude. Once that was done, he dispelled the rest of the tension, as simply as Caius could call upon and dismiss Bahamut, or the chaos in Valhalla:

“So to get you on the same page as, well, everyone else – ‘cause this one does require a little context – Cocoon fell three years ago, but before it fell we had these things called mu. They weren’t a problem around Bodhum, but bigger cities – like Palompolum – had a real problem with them. They were about the size of cats,” he paused and held his hands far enough apart to give a sort of visual of the size he was going for. Serah and Lebreau shared knowing glances – apparently Yuj had told this one before. “And they were real cute, actually – so cute that rumor has it that the Sanctum discontinued a weapons project dealing with them because they wouldn’t be taken seriously. Which honestly, they wouldn’t’ve been. At the rumor’s height it was more or less the most mocked idea in the media. Anyway, they live in burrows and have really. Really, really. Sticky fingers. You know what that means, right?”

Yeul shook her head and Serah filled her in, “It means they like to take things that don’t belong to them.” Then the seeress understood and nodded at Yuj to continue.

“ _So_ , after we all came down here and got the town set up – which took what,” he looked toward Lebreau. “Six months with all the help from the Guardian Corps?” She shrugged and nodded; close enough. “And everyone was starting to come down and get settled in, and lots of stuff started to go missing. Little stuff at first but eventually it was prominent enough that it started to become a problem. So, given that NORA was the closest thing to an organizational force in New Bodhum at the time, we had to get to the bottom of it.”

“Yeah, and by get to the bottom of it, you mean log ten hours on that dumb phone RPG you and Maqui were into at the time,” Snow interjected, earning a laugh from everyone – Yuj included.

“It was Maqui who logged ten hours. _I_ just happened to start playing and left the app open by accident, and it ran up the gameplay clock,” Yuj clarified, and then turned to Yeul and placed his hands on his hips. “Don’t listen to Snow’s lies.”

And then Serah put in – “I remember getting up _early_ that morning and finding both of you _very deeply engrossed_ in a two-player campaign.”

Lebreau just smirked and nodded an agreement. Lightning shot a glance to Caius – he managed to keep his expression neutral for the most part, but he couldn’t hide the fact that a smile was threatening to break through. The Guardian was leaning against the wall just barely inside, arms crossed and eyes fixed on Yuj as he told his story.

“Alright, fine, maybe I played the game. A little!” he conceded. “Point is, we didn’t find the root of the problem for several nights and Gadot and Lebreau ended up having to sit watch for the rest of the week. That week I learned how terrible _I_ was at cooking.”

“Thankfully, Serah saved the day,” Lebreau put in. Everyone whom was both present and involved at the time nodded in agreement – and Serah’s face turned a light shade of pink and she hid her face. Snow nudged her and they exchanged some words and a laugh.

“That she did!” Yuj agreed. “Anyway, we were just about to give up when near sunset on that Saturday – and I remember _exactly_ how it was – it was warm, but not too, and sunny, and we were all sitting out on the deck, drinkin’ and waiting for the stars to come out. It’s all nice and quiet and peaceful and then a little furry black _thing_ darts along the sand and we all just drop _everything_ and go after it. Literally. We had to buy new cocktail glasses after it was dealt with.” He laughed a bit and continued, growing more animated. “So basically you gotta imagine all of us – I mean you ‘aven’t met Gadot or Maqui yet but basically imagine me, Lebreau, Snow, this real big, muscular black guy, and a skinny blond kid in the worst possible clothes for living on a beach all yelling and running after a black, cat-sized pompom with legs.”

“And tripping over themselves, if I remember correctly,” Serah commented with a wry smile.

“I thought that was that other time – well, that’s uh, not a good story to tell a kid,” Lebreau replied.

“I think at least one person tripped both times.” The storyteller had the final say, of course, and everyone just shrugged and nodded; one glance at Yeul told Lightning that now she was _intensely curious_ as to what this other story was (given that she was a) literally sitting on the edge of her seat and b) looking around to the others to see if they would elaborate on Lebreau’s comment), but she seemed, of course, content to hear the ending of this one. “Regardless, we chased the mu all the way back to its burrow and thankfully Maqui thought to bring a flashlight and so we just – shined it down in there and sure enough, there were the little trinkets and all it’d made off with, and it was all curled up at the back of the burrow and it actually had little kits!” He cupped his hands as if he were holding one. “And like an idiot, I reached into the burrow in an effort to get the trinkets out and got bit.”

Caius snorted quietly. Lightning had a feeling that Yuj’s ostensible purpose for reaching in wasn’t quite on-point, but kept quiet as he continued: “Eventually Snow managed to get ‘em out and we placed them in a little box and returned the stuff to the people but there was still the matter of what to do with the mu because well, they’re certainly not native to _Pulse_ and it’s kind of cruel to let ‘em die out here or let ‘em stay and potentially mess up the ecosystem depending on how well they fare. But anyway, anyway – so we got a little cat carrier and—” he paused and snickered to himself—“and so like—god—we got a cat carrier for them and had them shipped back up to Cocoon next time supplies came around. Palompolum, specifically—” and at that Yuj lost his composure and burst out laughing.

Lebreau continued for him: “Hope – one of the l’Cie along with Snow and Lightning here – was taking his Biology class in school at the time – dumb for what he wants to do really, but I guess that’s what they require kids to take these days – and last time he came down he said he needed to study a live animal or monster’s behaviors and all for his final project. Now, this was a few weeks prior to this whole escapade so he already had a project by then, but these dolts had it shipped to _him_. Kind of as a half-joke, I _guess_ , but once the mu got there all safe and sound, we got _the_ angriest call from his dad.”

Yeul briefly cast a glance to Caius.

“It had a video feed and everything,” Yuj managed. “You should have seen the look on his face! He was _so mad_!”

“And Hope was in the background. If looks could kill—man!” Snow sat back, a grin plastered across his lips – a grin that was mirrored on Yeul’s features as she fought to suppress her laughter. “Glad he knew we didn’t mean any harm; also glad that mu are pretty cute.”

“To be fair,” Serah interjected, “They were better equipped to find a good home for the mu than we were, and it was back in its natural habitat. So it wasn’t like anyone was being _cruel_ or anything – and he was probably angry more for the fact that you had it specifically sent to _them_ rather than the fact that you had it sent to _Cocoon_ or anything.”

“Granted,” Lebreau replied with a shrug, finishing off her cocktail and setting it back on its coaster.

“So everything worked out in the end?” Yeul tilted her head to the side a bit with the question.

“It sure did. No hard feelings on any front,” Yuj replied with a nod, earning a smile from the seeress.

“Good. Thank you, Yuj!” The blue haired man bowed as Lightning and Caius both gave stiff nods of agreement. “What did you think, Caius?”

Most in the room stiffened upon the reminder that the Guardian was still there, as if they’d forgotten and he’d suddenly materialized out of the ether upon his name being spoken. He was standing still as ever, his presence but a shadow on the wall. Before Yeul had caught his attention, it seemed even Caius had forgotten he was present – or it would have seemed that way were he not listening so intently to Yuj’s tale. The blue-haired man returned to his seat after a bit of bickering with Snow and Lebreau about the _finer_ details of the story and after Lightning scooted back over into the space she had occupied previously as Caius replied, “Interesting – to say the least.” Violet eyes scanned the group of people during a short pause. “Are all of your days like this?”

“More ‘r less,” Snow admitted tentatively.

“Everyone’s busier in the morning, but for the afternoon this is pretty much the standard,” Serah added.

The warrior gave a satisfied grunt, then cast a glance to Yeul. She seemed happy enough, though when their eyes met a bit of worry crossed her features before he smiled in an attempt to dispel her fears. With the way she relaxed again, it seemed he’d been successful. “Seems nice.”

“It is,” Lightning agreed, staring Caius down with cold eyes that didn’t match the brief smile she flashed him.

While he was well aware that he wasn’t the most welcome guest – in no small part thanks to her efforts… “I hope I would not be imposing if I were to request that we stay for the time being?”

Lightning’s eyes widened a bit and there was a pause among everyone, but then everyone’s eyes went, ever so briefly, to Yeul, and a consensus seemed to be reached in the form of noncommittal shrugs and nods: sure why not. Caius, like this, was easily dealt with if he wanted to cause trouble, and Yeul was a good kid. The Guardian bowed his head in thanks and Yeul smiled, muttering, “Thank you.”

Caius took a seat on the floor next to the coffee table given that there was no room left on the couch (or what little there was wasn’t enough to accommodate him comfortably, rather) and the familiar rhythms of conversation resumed; Lebreau offered him a cocktail after being nudged by Yuj to do so and he declined but requested some water, which was swiftly delivered to him when Lebreau stepped into the kitchen to clean the empty glasses and fetch some snacks, a few of which Yeul picked at (she seemed very satisfied with the food too). Caius’s efforts to remain a simple observer were quickly thwarted when apparently all others in the room had decided that they didn’t like it when he kept quiet – perhaps because they were used to such a bustle of activity in that little house of their – and prodded him with a few questions or comments here or there, which he made efforts to reply to in as few words as possible, especially any which would require context that he didn’t feel like these outsiders really needed to be filled in on.

Sometime before Yuj got started on a second story – this one involving his escapades in a place called Eden, which he’d apparently returned from (to quote) “a changed man” – Caius found himself swiping one or two crackers here or there. They weren’t too bad – salty, mostly – and he ate them without bothering with the dip on account of it didn’t look particularly appetizing to him (but with the way Yeul went after it, perhaps he ought to have reconsidered).

The story itself was a bit confusing, he found – but mostly because he had no idea what Cocoon had been like on the inside and the background that Yuj occasionally paused to fill them (mostly Yeul, really, and her eyes glimmered with curiosity; apparently the now-crystallized world in the sky was absolutely _fascinating_ ) in on only served to give him a general idea – but if he found himself really _dying_ to know he figured he could just ask Lightning about it at a later date. At its conclusion, however, the door leading to the back-most room in the house creaked open, revealing a groggy and somewhat disheveled Noel shortly after he made his way down the short hallway to them. Lebreau greeted him with a quick, snippy, “How nice of you to finally join us.”

As Noel rubbed the sleep out of his eyes with the back of one hand (making sure that his pants were held up securely by his belt with the other), Snow put in: “You’re lucky you were asleep; Gadot came lookin’ for you a few hours ago.” Pause. “Your friends came by, by the way.”

It was that moment that the world seemed to snap into abrupt focus for him as his blue eyes fell on Caius. The Guardian just stared back at him before Noel glanced at Yeul. After a moment, Caius’s former protégé smiled at them both in greeting before taking a seat beside (well, maybe an arm’s length and a half away from, but still beside) the violet-haired man on the floor, presumably only because there really was no more room on the couch. Caius was a bit surprised the first thing past his lips was not an objection, a clarification that technically speaking they weren’t _friends_ , or even necessarily on friendly terms, but rather, “What’d Gadot want?”

“More help with the zirnitra. Apparently trying to drive it out without killing it didn’t go so well.”

That statement gave Caius some pause, and he stared Snow down for a moment. “You tried to _drive out_ a _zirnitra_?” Why make such a simple procedure – namely, killing it outright to get rid of it – so complicated?

“Yeah. Maybe not the best plan – but they’re _nasty_. Even as l’Cie, those things gave us some trouble – right, Lightning?”

The elder Farron nodded in agreement. “I feel bad for the poor schmucks that had _those things_ as their marks,” she muttered, and momentarily seemed a little melancholy before that familiar blaze of determination returned to her eyes and she looked to Snow. “If you need help killing it, then I’m game.”

“Thanks, sis.”

“ _Still_ not your sister.” Yet.

 

* * *

 

The afternoon wound on and it was around the point that Serah had pulled out a new board game to play with Yeul – from the looks of the pieces, checkers – that Caius excused himself and went to sit on the steps outside. Even being an observer of such a busy scene was somewhat exhausting; the people that used this house as their hangout were just bursting with the sort of energy that Caius would have expected from playful children – and, given that he’d lived as a vagabond with all the various Yeuls for centuries on end, hadn’t had prolonged exposure to for quite some time. That wasn’t to say that he didn’t enjoy it – certainly, it had lifted his spirits a bit, for whatever _that_ was worth – but perhaps this group was better left for Yeul to deal with. She seemed happy enough to, occasionally flashing the sort of smile that could light up an entire room even in pitch darkness.

Caius grunted an acknowledgement but did not speak.

Moments later, Noel was sitting on the opposite end of the steps from him, on the same level – there was only just enough room between them for someone to pass by if they needed to, but only if both of them closed their legs. Which, frankly, neither of them were likely to do unless someone really needed by. Their knees almost touched and only Caius shifting away until his right shoulder was pressed against the side of the barrier that prevented people from just _jumping_ onto (or off of) the deck onto the soft, white sand below prevented them from doing so.

“Hey.”

Caius regarded the dark-haired man with silence, but glanced in his direction to indicate that he’d heard him. He was sure that some of the injuries he’d inflicted on the poor guy were still healing, even if the worst of it was over and, always the trooper, Noel was hardly in need of any assistance going about his day-to-day life. His fading black eye was proof of that; Caius only noticed the slight discoloration because he’d been looking for it in the first place, probably, and only because they were so close.

“You came, huh.”

“Because Yeul requested it.”

“Yeah, but _you_ still _did_. That’s something, you know.”

Caius pressed his lips together.

After a brief pause, Noel continued: “So, what do you think?”

“They’re… energetic.” Caius glanced over his shoulder into the house. “Yeul seems to like them.”

“And they seem to like Yeul,” Noel replied with a slight smile, placing his elbows on his knees and leaning forward a bit. “Will you let her visit after this?”

“Perhaps.”

The ghost of a smile teased at the corners of Noel’s lips. “You _do_ care about her happiness.”

The Guardian’s gaze fixed on the slowly-dimming horizon; the sky was still very much a bright, clear shade of blue, but he had a feeling that as the sun continued in its path over the cliffs at the town’s back, that would not be the case in a few hours. “In the end, I suppose. It is secondary to her salvation, mind you.” And it was that primary goal that he’d cast away everything that Noel had praised him on for. Because unhappiness could be fixed with time and diligence. And an endless cycle of death and reincarnation could be nothing short of a curse to be broken – when one was so painfully mortal that they had no chance to live, then…

“Still on that, huh…” Noel let the thought trail into silence – Caius was too stubborn for _him_ to sway at the moment. Perhaps, trapped in this era and given enough time and effort, he could be swayed from this warpath. Then he sat back. “You already know what I’ve got to say to that. No point in repeating myself, really.”

A long moment of silence grew between them, charged and heavy with all the words that were left unsaid but were, quietly, understood. Then, Caius spoke, a strange sort of levity creeping into his voice: “What if I told you that my existence was akin to that of a Cie’th?”

“ _Don’t even_ , Caius.”

A wry chuckle slipped past his lips. “It was a hypothetical.” Maybe. “But I guess not.” If nothing else, Noel was certainly steadfast in his morals. He reminded Caius a bit of… Well, himself – or rather, the man he had been centuries ago. Before the War. Before Paddra’s fall. Before the Heart. Perhaps before even his promotion to Guardian, when he still identified himself using his true full name rather than simply as ‘Caius Ballad’ or, at the time, simply ‘Caius’. If only Noel had it in him to end his life, he would make a fine Guardian. His lips parted as if there was more to say, but instead Caius merely turned his gaze to Noel and let himself smile a bit – it was a bit tight-lipped and perhaps Caius appeared more worried than anything but if Noel’s reply in the form of a brighter smile was anything to go by, then he understood the meaning behind it and no words were necessary.

The silence that grew between them wasn’t even uncomfortable from that point forward – although to be fair that might have been simply because it didn’t get the chance to before Yeul knelt down and wrapped her arms around Caius’s shoulders from behind, nuzzling into his hair. “Tired?” he prompted, and she nodded, mumbling something into his neck that even with her so close he couldn’t quite understand. He brought up one hand to pat her head before she released him so that he could stand; then, Caius promptly picked Yeul up and cradled her in his arms, casting a glance toward Noel, whom seemed to understand that they were going to leave and acknowledged this fact with a curt wave of his hand.

“Leaving?”

Caius turned in time to see Yuj approaching, his hands on his hips. The violet-haired man replied with a nod, “About to, it seems.”

“Take care, then. Don’t be strangers now, y’hear me?” The fact that he was very pointedly avoiding Caius’s eyes did not go unnoticed by the Guardian – but he thought nothing of it.

Yeul cast a smile toward Yuj, and Caius managed at least a smirk. “We’ll try not to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awwwh, the beginning of beautiful things.  
> This was one of my favorite chapters to write. Also, that rumor being a thing that happened is canon according to... some quiz or another in XIII-2. You shouldn't expect me to remember which one, honestly. There are a lot of quizzes in XIII-2, none of which I bothered with after I realized that there was no way I was going to 100% that game.


	13. Looking Glass

By the time Caius stepped into the house, Yeul had been fast asleep in his arms. He set about trying to scrape together dinner – ironic, but it was actually harder to create meals with some semblance of balance with the prepackaged and frozen food Lightning filled the refrigerator with, apparently either because Cocoonites liked that stuff or because she just couldn’t cook. But at least previously, when he and Yeul lived as vagabonds, he could fall back on centuries and centuries of knowledge of the local flora and fauna to figure out what was good (and safe) to eat and what wasn’t. Prepackaged food, however, likely wasn’t any good after it had been opened and so he loathed to chance it – but he would have to, and he was slowly starting to grasp what some of the things were, although most of it seemed to have preparation directions that he couldn’t read at all and so those were left alone – but he could manage what he eventually found to be peas, and he could manage what were apparently mashed potatoes. Those were quick, and easy, and how do you mess up peas and mashed potatoes? Who even does that? (Idiots, that’s who.)

When that was done and dealt with, he fetched Yeul. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes long enough to eat, but before long retreated back into their shared bedroom and plunked herself down on the mat to sleep once more with a grateful smile. It was around that time, too, that Lightning arrived, the fun at the NORA house apparently over. He couldn’t read her expression but she certainly seemed relaxed enough; he was tempted to smile at her or to greet her but he kept quiet and kept his expression as neutral as possible instead. Regardless of that day’s good behavior (as she would likely regard it), they were still little more than grudging allies, and that was likely all that they would be. Once this was seen through, they’d likely go back to being enemies – or, better, become complete strangers. But that was looking _awfully_ far into the future.

“Seems like the gang likes Yeul,” she commented as she stepped in front of the fridge and examined its contents before finally pulling out a bottle of water. Lightning gave one more pause before she let the door fall closed and she moved around Caius as he continued cleaning the dishes that he and Yeul had dirtied, making sure that not one bit of food stuck to them before setting them on the rack in the other side of the sink to dry.

“And Yeul likes them. You may be seeing more of us in the coming days.” He tried not to sound tired. It didn’t work. But as long as they didn’t try to manipulate Yeul for their own ends and she was happy with them, then… Was there really any harm being done, any rules _truly_ being broken? That smile of hers wasn’t something that needed to be hidden away, covered by fear of her stray words twisting the timeline or kept by his side far away from where any people could see.

(Maybe, when you’ve grown as old as Caius Ballad, you stop caring so much about _letter_ of the law.)

Lightning simply hummed in response as she seemed to literally weigh her options for dinner – one unidentifiable can of brown soup or a different unidentifiable can of yellow soup? She settled on the brown soup and fished through a drawer for a can opener. “Doesn’t mean they like _you_ , but it’s better than you bein’ some sort of phantom, I guess.” Caius snorted at that and she looked at him for a moment. “Something funny?”

“No, nothing.” With the sauce pan he used to ‘cook’ (really more like reheat) the mashed potatoes scrubbed completely clean, he set to work putting things away where they belonged. One of the bowls he put away was snatched from its place in the cupboard in short order by Lightning whom, after a moment, poured the contents of the newly-opened can of soup into it. It didn’t really look all that much like soup, more like goop. Good thing it wasn’t for him; you couldn’t have gotten him to eat it even if you paid him, anyway. Lightning covered the bowl and set it in the microwave. “…Lightning.”

“Hm?”

“May I ask you something?”

“You just did.”

He took that as a ‘ _sure_ ’. “Yuj told a story about a place called Eden today. What was it like – really?”

“When I was there? Chaotic, and falling apart, since we were l’Cie and all sorts of Pulse nasties were swarming the city.” Caius simply looked at her and she knew his question wasn’t really answered, but what could she do about that? “I never paid it a visit myself on my own time. I was too tied up with work.” Maybe she would have, had Serah gotten the chance to go to the university there, but… That future was worlds away now.

“I see.”

The microwave went off after a few moments and Lightning retrieved her bowl of soup; what was once goop now looked to be a nice beef something or another which honestly was probably chock full of more sodium than was really absolutely necessary. Lightning stirred the soup around before returning it to the microwave. The last thing that Caius put back where it belonged was the sauce pan, which found its home in the cabinet next to the stove with its lone companion (a single skillet with the nonstick surface scratched to hell and back). With his task at hand finished, he slipped into his room.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the evening was uneventful – almost boring, actually. They fell back into their routines and, shortly before sunset, Caius retired; after a while of reading in her room, Lightning did the same.

When Caius woke in the middle of the night, Yeul was holding onto him so tightly that Caius had little room to move within her grasp whatsoever and her fingers digging into his sides was a little more the uncomfortable. It was after only a few moments that he realized that she was crying softly, her face pressed between his shoulder blades. He brought one hand up to rest on hers and she pulled him even closer in response, and he just gently stroked the back of one of her hand until the worst of it had subsided and she was calm enough for him to request to be released. Her hands slipped from around him and he took a deep breath before pulling himself into an upright position and looking to Yeul, whom also pulled herself into an upright position – though likely more because she wanted to remain pressed to Caius, because she quickly glued herself to his arm.

“What’s the matter, Yeul?” His free hand found its way to the side of her face and he wiped the tears away gently. Yeul’s hair had fallen out of place to obscure her eyes and he brushed several strands behind her ear after a moment, too, trying to goad her into looking at him. Her breaths were quick, short, and sporadic; it seemed she’d been crying a lot harder before he’d woken and he felt a pang of guilt at that realization. He should have stirred sooner, should have been awake to comfort her…

Her lips parted to allow her to speak but whatever words she’d meant to say were replaced by a whine and more tears. Her Guardian hushed her gently and pulled her closer to him as best he could – with her clinging to his arm she couldn’t really get _much_ closer, granted, but it was the intent of the gesture that counted. Did she have a nightmare? Or…

“Did you have a vision?” She nodded in response and his breath caught in his throat, although he tried to hide it. “Come here,” he said, voice barely above a whisper, and after a moment he successfully freed his arm from the seeress’s grasp and pulled her instead into his lap and into a loose embrace. Caius could soothe her nerves, chase bad dreams away. But there was nothing he could do about the visions – no words of comfort that would sufficiently dispel the fear that they had the power to bring. They weren’t some sort of monster hiding in the darkest corners of the room to be dismissed with a light.

If all went according to how it was meant to, they would come true without fail. If not, another vision would follow – and Yeul’s already short life would be shortened further. There was no way to win.

He let Yeul bury her face against his shoulder as her breathing started to even out. When she was more or less completely calm, he gently patted her back and she drew away a bit, though still leaned against his chest. Her eyes flickered closed for a few moments and he just held onto her, letting his presence be a source of comfort in of itself.

A moment’s pause, a moment’s consideration. He spoke carefully, gently: “Yeul. Will you tell me what you saw?”

She looked up at him and just blinked, lips parted and eyebrows knitted together.

“You don’t have to, if you don’t want to.”

Yeul looked at him _then_ as if he’d suddenly turned into a three-headed chocobo – and then Caius recalled that before _that_ Yeul, a Yeul that had yet to come in this era, he had stressed the importance of a seeress sharing her visions with her Guardian. Because it was part of his duties to commit them to memory, to remember the entire timeline. But after _that_ Yeul – the Yeul who would not look him in the eye, the Yeul who refused to tell him of the contents of her visions… After a moment she shook her head, and Caius hummed his contentment to assure her that he did not mind.

He laid back down and Yeul allowed it, curling up beside him with her head resting on his chest, content to listen to his breathing and heartbeat as she started drifting off back to sleep. Caius never let her go, not completely – and for that she was thankful. On the border between dreams and wakefulness, she whispered his name, and he stirred, humming an acknowledgement. She gave a moment’s pause before she saw it fit to continue, her eyelids too heavy for her to keep open – “You can’t go.” The words came out as little more than a whisper and proceeded to fade into nothing. She wasn’t actually sure that any sound had come out at all.

Caius gave no indication that he had heard her in the first place. She honestly wasn’t sure whether that was comforting or frightening.

 

* * *

 

Caius and Yeul got off to a late start that morning, with Lightning apparently gone already when Caius woke and Yeul still being fast asleep at his side. Sunlight filtered in through the window and warmed their skin and prompted Caius to kick the blanket that for once he was actually afforded the entirety of off with a disgruntled groan. He gently pried himself away from Yeul, whom did not wake and seemed perfectly content to sleep the day away. Honestly – that was fine with him too, though he knew it would only be a matter of time before she woke.

He smiled down at her; all traces of the night had vanished from her features and she was sleeping soundly, her breathing deep and even, her face peaceful and the trails that the tears left on her skin long dried up.

He slipped out of the room as quietly as he could. The rest of the house was dead silent and Lightning’s door was closed (and probably locked); cleaned dishes had been left in the rack in the sink and a box that hadn’t been present the previous evening rested on top of the refrigerator. It seemed she had also left the book she was reading behind – and he regarded it curiously and flipped through it a moment, not that he could read anything. The _spoken_ language between Cocoon and Gran Pulse was identical, but from the looks of things Cocoon had far more symbols in its alphabet; he didn’t even want to think of what the larger symbols that cropped up occasionally were, but the numerals were fairly easy to identify when he happened across them, with them barely being different from their Pulsian counterparts.

Caius set the book down where he’d found it and opened the refrigerator.

Once it had become apparent that they both were just going to take what they pleased when it came to food they had saved for themselves, both Lightning and Caius had stopped bothering – though if Lightning really wanted something she left a note, which of course Caius couldn’t read but just its presence was enough for him to keep his hand off of those marked containers. He, on the other hand, made no such efforts.

After a moment of perusal, Caius picked out a cup filled with a jumbled mix of sliced fruit. It was, unfortunately, filled to bursting, and after opening the cup the juice that the fruit was suspended in decided to dribble out down the sides of the container. Caius grumbled a curse but wiped it up anyway before pulling out a fork and starting to work on the contents. The juice in the cup made everything sweet to the point where he wondered, briefly, if he was eating _actual_ fruit – the slices of what appeared to be mandarin orange were far sweeter than what he’d expected and the juice erased the taste of the kiwi completely. He’d only made it through about half of the cup before he remembered that this was the reason why he’d just picked fresh fruit for the past month to make a breakfast out of – a habit that, as summer got into full-swing, he would have to wean himself off of (or else switch over to another, far less tasty variety that bloomed in the spring and bore fruit during the summer months). The remains of the fruit cup found its way into the trash shortly before, finally, Yeul emerged from their room rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“Good morning.”

She hummed her response, slowly walking over to the refrigerator and examining its contents before deciding that there was nothing that looked good.

“Would you like to visit Noel again today?”

The seeress paused to consider this before nodding, her eyes cast away and her expression unreadable.


	14. Foresight

They spent the morning flitting about along the paths branching out from the house before heading down to the house just a bit before noon. Caius held Yeul close in an attempt to shield her from overly-curious eyes. It wasn’t every day that these people saw newcomers; that much was obvious – and they stuck out like sore thumbs. Well, more the Guardian than the seeress, given he stood easily around one and a half feet over his charge and was decked out in all-black leather armor on a white sand beach that was rapidly approaching the summer months. Yeul kept her eyes cast away from the strangers that populated the general area of the town, instead focusing on their destination and also apparently on trying to simultaneously not trip over her own feet and keep sand out of her shoes as she walked – which lead to high steps and Caius offering to carry her the rest of the way once they passed through the rather unsightly chain fence that acted as the town’s ‘official’ border. She declined of course, and simply picked her feet up instead of walking normally – and had they been alone Caius was certain that she’d ask if they could make a fun game out of it, and like the loyal Guardian he is he probably would have joined in until they got tired of it.

Caius let Yeul ascend the steps first – and he followed soon after. Despite the house being open to the air there was still a pretty clearly defined inside and outside, with the inside being bounded by air conditioner vents blowing straight down and inwards, cooling all of the air inside to a noticeably lower temperature. How the heat of the outside didn’t manage to filter in must have been one of the many miracles and marvels of Cocoonite technology – one that he didn’t understand or particularly care to learn the inner workings of, but was momentarily thankful for nonetheless. These past months were probably the coolest (temperature-wise) that he’d experienced in centuries, barring autumns and winters spent in the mountain ranges of Gran Pulse. He lingered on that boundary line for several moments while Yeul took a seat beside the younger Farron sister, whom greeted the seeress warmly before looking up at Caius and giving a stiff nod with a faked smile that he honestly would have preferred weren’t there, but he supposed it was some sort of common courtesy, to pretend that unwelcome guests were welcome when there was no other choice but to deal with their presence.

Caius returned the nod – but didn’t bother with the smile. Serah looked away after a few moments before folding her hands in her lap and readily accepting Yeul into the conversation. Noel sat across from them and cast a glance over to Caius with a far more genuine smile and bright blue eyes before inviting him further in with a nod.

And, after a moment, Caius gave in to the request, taking a seat on the floor as he had the previous day. Not for lack of room this time; Yeul, Serah, and Noel were, in truth, the only ones who seemed to be present (strangely enough; at the very least he’d expect to see Lightning, but…), although he didn’t bother trying to peek into the other rooms. The kitchen was quiet and pristine – obviously either recently cleaned or not used since the previous day in the first place.

“So… Caius.”

He looked up at Serah and she met his gaze levelly, cold and resolute behind that mask of friendliness. He almost wanted to scoff at it, to tell her to drop the act – but that would be rude, wouldn’t it. She was – all of them were – kind enough to allow him within five feet of the town in general, and he wasn’t particularly keen on screwing that up at the moment.

“Been getting along well?”

“With your sister? As well as I suppose I can, given our previous circumstances.”

“Hm. Well, at least you’re making the effort.”

The corners of his lips twitched a bit at her words – how transparent. Perhaps the façade of friendliness wasn’t meant for him, but rather for the child whom accompanied him… But then, he and Yeul shared a knowing glance and he knew that she saw through it, too. Hmph. Well, two could play at that game. Caius let his elbows rest on one of the few clear spaces on top of the coffee table before him and he looked away from the woman who leapt through time in an attempt to find her sister – an attempt cut short by her sister being, even if temporarily, returned to her by the graces of Etro (though of course, such an act was not free of an ulterior motive). “Believe it or not, I am capable of being civil.”

“Oh, I believe it,” she amended with a wave of one hand. “You just never struck me as type. Like, it wouldn’t suit you to get along with her, y’know? And same in reverse. You’re both so stubborn.”

At that, he actually did scoff. “From what I hear, she’s talked about me behind my back. Hardly civil.”

Serah pressed her thumbs together. “Well… I mean, not a lot. Just if anything major happened,” she replied, an edge of bitterness creeping into her voice, “like after you killed her.”

“Can we—“ Noel’s words were cut off when Caius raised a hand; he didn’t need his former apprentice to defend him.

“Then perhaps it’d be wise of you not to give me too much credit just yet. I have my reasons for seeing this through to the end, and for the moment my agenda does not include doing your sister or anyone in this town any harm, but I can if you wish it of me, Serah.” Out of the corner of his eye, he could see how she shifted uncomfortably at his words, how she pressed her lips together. And so he smirked and added, “Don’t worry. That’s not a threat.”

“Even if it was, I could take you.”

“Perhaps… Your skills in combat really are quite impressive.” He cast a glance to Noel. “Maybe you ought to show him a thing or two.”

Serah’s lips quirked a bit into a not-quite smirk.

Noel blinked and if Caius hadn’t been paying attention he would have missed how – just for an instant – he looked a bit offended, before he replied, “It’s not like I couldn’t beat you, Caius – you just—“ He cast a glance to Yeul. “I won’t do it.”

“I’m aware. I didn’t mean it like that. But did you truly believe that I became the warrior I am by learning from one person?”

“Well…” The brunet took a moment to actually take this into consideration and then, quietly, shrugged. “Fair enough.”

Caius chuckled a bit. “Precisely.”

Yeul reached forward and plucked a simple metal loop puzzle off the table from where it was about half-hidden by some magazines and started working on it quietly. “They’re stronger than you?”

“That depends,” he replied, watching her for several moments. “But at the very least under the right circumstances, both Noel and Serah can claim victory over me in battle – be it by their combined or individual efforts.” Caius paused and let his gaze shift first to Serah, whose slight smile faded, and then to Noel. The Guardian let his chin rest in one gloved hand as he continued, “That’s not something many can say – and not something to be taken lightly.”

“But you’ll be my Guardian forever, right?” Her eyes left the loops but her hands continued to work until they were free, and one half of the puzzle was clutched in each of her pale, tiny hands. Those eyes were all-too knowing, for better or for worse – and not just because of her curse.

He had to admit that he hated it sometimes. Hated how easy it was for Yeul – for all of the Yeuls – to read him. Hated how easy it was for them to trap him; they knew every tick and they knew that deep down in his heart, no matter how gnarled it had become over the centuries… Caius would never be able to truly deny their wishes.

“Of course, Yeul.”

“So, if Snow is Serah’s fi… ‘fee-antsy’…”

“Fiancé,” Serah offered.

“Fiancé,” Yeul affirmed, “Then since he can beat you, will Noel be her Guardian?”

“I’m not concerned about that.”

“Uh – actually, I haven’t had any visions since the gates acted up and sent us all the way back here from Noel’s time. I guess that’s a good thing, but it’s not like I need a Guardian for anything.”

Yeul’s brows furrowed and she looked to the armored man in response to this revelation but Caius merely hummed, and to Serah said: “Hopefully it will stay that way.”

“I’m not sure I mind either way, actually…” Serah shrugged. “I guess it’s nice knowing that I’ve got the chance to see everyone again, and that Lightning’s back for the moment… But if I had to live with the visions then I would have, gladly.”

“You wouldn’t have lasted.”

“Yeah. I know.”

They lapsed into silence. Yeul slowly and half-heartedly started trying to put the metal loops back together again before giving up and setting both pieces on the table. Caius retrieved them and they were back together within a few moments – and he gave the loops a few solid tugs in opposite directions to confirm that they weren’t going anywhere. “I hope,” Caius began after a minute or three, “that you’ll excuse my words.”

“Excused,” Noel replied.

“You’re just being honest, I guess,” Serah added.

“Still.” Not everyone was as eager to face death as he was – though he certainly commended Serah’s ability to accept that her death was imminent had Etro not intervened in the way that she had. He couldn’t help but be a bit curious as to what that particular timeline held… Oh well; it was inconsequential now. “There are better topics for such a bright day.”

“Yeah,” Noel agreed. “Y’know, the weather’s been pretty great lately. Not a cloud in the sky.”

Caius nodded an agreement. “A bit warm for my tastes.”

“I figured,” Serah put in, gesturing towards him – no doubt in reference to his armor. He couldn’t even object, instead shrugging as she continued, “You have that change of clothes we lent you. Why not wear that instead of the armor?”

“Discounting the heat, my armor’s actually quite comfortable.”

She pressed her lips together and directed her gaze to the ceiling, crossing her arms. “Whatever you say.” Then, apparently deciding that that topic of conversation was due to be over and done with, offered, “Do you or Yeul need anything?” With the question she rose from her seat and crossed into the kitchen.

“I’m fine,” Caius replied, looking to the seeress.

Yeul considered for a moment before requesting some water; Noel requested a(nother) cup of coffee – a request which Serah adamantly denied.

 

* * *

 

A little bit later, Maqui and Yuj made their appearances – and shed some light as to where, precisely, everyone was. Apparently Gadot, Snow, and Lightning were out trying to formulate a plan of action for dealing with the zirnitra (Caius was still convinced that they were making it much harder than it needed to be) while Lebreau was with a friend at one of the houses over the water and wouldn’t be back until it was time to get dinner started. They seemed to think it was a shame, as did Noel and Serah; Caius and Yeul were mostly indifferent on the matter but before Yuj and Maqui could raid the kitchen for junk food, Serah claimed it and started on lunch. “Nothing complicated,” she assured them, before making sure that no one had a particular preference in the way of what sort of bread they like for sandwiches.

Nothing complicated indeed – or so he assumed before she broke out a skillet. It was only a few moments before they had toasty sandwiches with some sort of meat that was definitely not ham and several slices of melted white cheese placed in front of them, two at a time. Despite eating in swift, measured bites, Caius was still one of the last ones done – behind Yeul but finished moments before Noel. The sandwiches were pretty to look at and the meat in them was thin-sliced but flavorful – but the cheese didn’t really taste like anything in particular. Disappointing, really, but food was food and the Guardian was not about to complain given that Serah had been kind enough to feed him. And out of the kindness of his heart he offered to help clean up, but Serah declined and did it herself, mumbling something about how they had a system and it would just be easier if she did it. Fair enough, he would have figured, if she didn’t allow Yeul to help and if she weren’t more than happy to show the seeress where everything went – though granted her aid quickly ran out when it came to actually putting things away, since she couldn’t reach the cabinets that they put the plates in. Once her time as a kitchen aide came to a close, she took a seat next to Caius on the floor, leaning against him a bit.

In the meantime, Maqui and Yuj broke out a board game – chess, from the looks of things, and although he didn’t particularly care to pay attention to the game itself, watching them devolve into piece-stealing and petty attempts at cheating brought an ever-so-slight smirk to his lips. Yuj attempted to teach Yeul to play, but in the end she wasn’t too interested, much to the blue-haired man’s dismay; the games ended when Snow (the cat) hopped up onto the table and sent pieces askew. She meowed up at Yuj, tail swishing until he picked her up and set her on the couch – or rather, the cat set herself on the couch, after wiggling out of his arms and apparently scratching Yuj in the process, if the way he flinched away and clutched his forearm was any indication. “Ungrateful cat—“

“Cats’ll hate you even if you give ‘em what they want. You of all people ought to know that.”

Caius knew without looking who that voice belonged to, and the calico meowed up at Etro’s champion several times before Lightning finally gave her some head-scratchings. And Snow the cat started purring so loud that Caius could hear her from where he was sitting. Lightning sat down on the couch roughly across from where he was on the floor and the cat moved out of the way before deciding to loaf on Lightning’s lap, which she allowed with a defeated huff.

“How’d it go?” Noel prompted, and her attention was pulled away from the cat in her lap.

“Hn—oh. Went fine, I guess; so turns out the damn thing has like three eggs in its nest… As if our job wasn’t hard enough. Fighting those things – what, three times? – was enough trouble when we were l’Cie.”

“Are… Are they that bad?” Noel rubbed the back of his neck.

“Considering that they can spit poison at you and are about twice the size of an amphisbaena – yes.”

“Yeesh.”

“That’s right.”

Caius rolled his eyes and looked to Yeul, who let her hand rest over his on the table. She smiled up at him, though the smile didn’t reach those knowing eyes for whatever reason – perhaps he’d ask later.

“By the way, Yeul.” The seeress perked up at the sound of Lightning’s voice and she continued, “Could I borrow Caius for a moment? We’ll just be outside.”

Yeul hesitated, then nodded, and with a sigh, the Guardian rose. He had a feeling he didn’t exactly get a say in the matter of whether he spoke to Lightning or not.

 

* * *

 

The sky was clear save for clouds so low on the horizon that they resembled hills at a glance, and the water lapping at the shore several yards away was a crystal clear blue. People wandered the vast swath of beach that had kind of been agreed upon to be a town square of sorts, although given that Bodhum lacked much to see or do unless you actually lived there or really, really liked beaches, it was pretty barren structurally-speaking. Some people were sprawled out on beach towels and some school-aged children splashed about in the shallowest part of the water or collected shells, but there was nothing fancy; briefly, Caius wondered if the ‘old’ Bodhum had been as sleepy as this little beachside settlement. Probably not.

It seemed that they had both taken a moment to admire the scenery, because Lightning’s eyes were fixed on the horizon, and she only looked back to the armored man when he called her name. She hummed a response, meeting his gaze and letting her fingers trace patterns on the wood of the barrier separating the deck from the sand below. “Oh.” Her eyes widened a bit and she turned her gaze back to the horizon to hide her embarrassment at having apparently gotten so caught up inside her own head that she’d forgotten that Caius had been there; how charming. “So I was thinking. In light of the fact that I’ve needed to get your gunblade fixed not once, but twice—” she apparently couldn’t be bothered to mask the edge of irritation in her voice—“And we’ll definitely need to fight once we set out, I’m going to teach you how to use it properly.”

He scoffed. “A sword is a sword.” Besides, it wasn’t like Lightning had any use for it anyway, and if it didn’t suit him then he just wouldn’t use it.

“You would be surprised.”

“Even if it should break, I have magic.”

“Yeah? Good luck casting magic when some beast has you cornered.”

That wouldn’t happen, he was sure. But nonetheless, he pressed his lips together… “Point.” And there were a fair number of monsters across Gran Pulse that were resistant if not outright immune to magic – even the sort he could conjure, surprisingly enough. “Fine.”

“Glad that’s settled. We start tomorrow; be up before dawn and we can get started.”

“And what of Yeul?”

“Serah’s usually up pretty early even when she’s off; school teacher and all. She can take care of her.”

Caius wasn’t sure he was completely comfortable with that idea, but relented because judging by the tone of Lightning’s voice, it had already been decided. “And what would you like in return?”

The question gave Lightning some pause.

“I cannot recall a time we have given each other something for free. What is it you want in return?”

“How about, your cooperation and you not forming a habit out of breaking the Organyx.” And to punctuate the statement, she held her hand out to him.

He snorted. Simple enough. Caius nodded to indicate that he’d understood the terms before taking her hand – the whole of which fit easily in his. Their eyes met for a moment and for once there was no hostility on the part of either of them – or perhaps, it was merely masked by the mutual understanding that if they were going to finish this Focus (and see what ‘reward’ Etro had in mind for them), they would have to be willing to work with each other to some extent.

They shook on it, then lingered a moment before Caius slipped his hand from hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually rewrote the entirety of this chapter. It was miserable. Note to self: write things right the first time next time!! Very happy with the end result, though.


	15. Supplementary Lessons

Lightning _was not kidding around_ when she told Caius to be up before dawn, although how long before dawn had not been specified and somewhat to his dismay, it was still mostly dark outside (although the rosy fingertips of dawn had begun to spread their reach across the horizon) when she invited herself into his room and pressed ice cubes to his exposed skin until he woke with a start and almost at her throat through all the frazzled grogginess and irritation. Lightning squeezed his hand hard enough to let him know that his threat was considered _duly noted and not helping his case_ , but what was she expecting, honestly?

Yeul apparently had no issues getting up after a few minutes of prodding her awake, though, and she was probably more energetic than Caius was. Ready to face the day and whatever that entailed, as always; rarely did Yeul (well, at the very least, _this_ Yeul) ever raise complaint about being woken early, in part because if Caius woke her then it was usually for good reason. Presumably, the other part was because new days brought new destinations – at least insofar as their previous lifestyle was concerned.

They got ready for the day in silence, with nothing but the (admittedly faint) noises of their daily rituals to hint that the house was even inhabited.

Breakfast was simple, and although Caius couldn’t say he was hungry he forced some of that tasteless goop that Lightning called ‘oatmeal’ down his throat anyway once he’d gotten dressed in his armor; much to his dismay he was not given enough time to situate most of his feathers in his hair properly after every necessary piece of his armor was slipped into place and she shoved the Organyx into his hands.

And after a brief stint down in New Bodhum proper to drop Yeul off with a still-waking-up Serah and a brief chat between sisters to explain the situation, she and Caius were off. The hike woke him up at least, and got his blood flowing.

They didn’t stray far from the house, having settled on a clearing only a little bit out. The trees and other plants around them afforded them a sort of veil of privacy, although they were both dimly aware of the fact that to their west, there was literally nothing beyond the trees except for a steep drop and a pit; it wasn’t a fall that would kill either of them, of course, not with the Heart of Chaos beating in their chests. But it would hurt, he was sure, and he wasn’t exactly prepared to fling himself off the edge no matter how much of an incentive Lightning wanted to give him. With a flick of the wrist, Lightning had drawn her gunblade, and Caius did the same; he was tempted to raise it at her, but she gave no indication that she intended to fight him.

“If there’s one thing that I’m thankful for, it’s that _hopefully_ I don’t have to reteach you the _basics_. Nice to know that you’ve already come to terms with the fact that you can’t wield the Organyx like you did that sword of yours.” Her voice was clipped, cold – and he had a feeling that this was going to be a long morning. Lightning never struck him as the teaching _type_ , honestly – and Caius hadn’t properly been a student for _centuries_ , with most of his sword-wielding style stemming from necessity, drifting semi-hopelessly between mentors for several years in his youth, and adaptations to all the various weapons he’d tried (with the greatsword just happening to be the one that stuck; he was faintly certain that people around Paddra had commented that he looked rather handsome with a spear as he passed them on the streets, though). Lightning assumed her typical battle stance: shoulders back, feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent slightly, weapon clutched in her right hand with the blade tilted downward. She turned slightly to the right and while she let her left arm hang at her side, he knew all too-well how quickly she could change that – firing off powerful spells or, in Valhalla, blocking his blows with her shield if she couldn’t bring her blade up to catch on his in time. “Unfortunately – if you understood the differences between regular swords and gunblades, we wouldn’t be here right now.”

“Of course,” he huffed, making subtle adjustments to his stance – just enough to differentiate between him just standing there and being – theoretically speaking – battle-ready. Feet apart (just shoulder width), facing Lightning at an angle and leading with his dominant (right) hand. Practically a replica of her stance for most intents and purposes, although he was approximately a hundred-and-ten percent certain that he didn’t pull it off _half_ as well as she did, if only because with a weapon of this nature and this size, Lightning was his only point of reference for how to wield it ‘properly’. And even then, certain things – such as the force of his swings, for one, or any other element of his fighting style that he’d become entrenched in over the centuries, for another; on the flip side, his and Lightning’s builds were _worlds_ apart – simply didn’t translate well. Back straight, shoulders relaxed – and he stared her down and willed her to continue.

Her lips twitched. “Let’s learn by _doing_ , then.”

The air between them briefly became charged and they quirked their blades. After a moment, he lunged for her – but his rival swiveled on her heel and brought her gunblade up to catch on his; she’d moved fast enough to earn her namesake, it seemed. His momentum was enough to force her sliding back in the grass quite a bit, but perhaps only because the grass under her feet was slick with morning dew and not because he’d actually done _that_ much to force her backwards. Their eyes locked from between the blades and he let up just a fraction before digging his feet in and forcing himself forward – or, that was the plan of action he was going with, but the instant he let up, her blade slipped from his and she’d brought it around to his side, although she didn’t let it bite into his armor.

“Where do I _begin_ ,” she said, and her voice hinted at more exasperation than he figured was actually there. Lightning paced in front of him a bit before she returned the Blazefire Saber to its sling and stepped over to him. “First – you can _not_ rely on sheer strength with these things, Caius. You are going to _break_ it. Again.”

He grunted in acknowledgement; no new news there.

“Second…” She took a moment to pause before amending, “Actually, you know what – here.”

Caius jumped a little when her hand wrapped around his wrist – and he was tempted to rip it out of her grasp, but refrained. He was a little surprised, in honesty, that she managed to wrap her hand around his wrist completely – he was already massive in all dimensions, especially compared to her (while very clearly made out of little more but muscle, Lightning still had an ethereal softness to her frame and features that would have made him question her background in the military had he not seen what she was capable of both first-hand), and with the addition of his armor and the padding around his dominant wrist it didn’t look like she could, until she did. Her other hand came to rest on his opposite shoulder and after humming for a moment in consideration, she seemed to have a clear picture of what she was going for and thus started her work.

He let her manipulate his body as if he were made out of clay, not putting up any particular fuss. Her touches were, for the most part fleeting and utilitarian, unless he hesitated or she had to take a moment to take some new factor that crossed her mind into consideration – and none of it went past him first, of course. He didn’t expect it to, didn’t need it to, didn’t particularly care for it to; she was the authority with gunblades, which were apparently different enough from swords that she needed to teach him how to use one without breaking it, and any advice she could give him apparently couldn’t just be limited to ‘don’t swing so hard’. She nudged his feet a fraction farther apart and gently encouraged him to bend his knees a bit – and several times encouraged him to clutch the gunblade somewhere higher on its hilt , closer to the first joint, and several more times encouraged him to let the weapon just hang there with its tip pointing toward the ground. After a few moments she stepped away, paced around him, and admired her work.

And after a few moments, she nodded. “And that scowl of yours can stay.”

He didn’t even dignify that with a proper response, instead rolling his eyes and letting his characteristic scowl deepen.

“More to the point,” she began, “I hope I don’t have to explain my improvements.”

He shook his head and shifted his weight back a bit. “Lower center of gravity…”

“And more mobility. Look—” with a flick of her wrist her gunblade was out again, and briefly he wondered if he’d ever get to do it with such finesse. “—the trick to wielding gunblades effectively is leaving your options open. They were designed for both short and long-range combat; from where you were, you had a fair amount of range, sure – but not nearly enough.” She mimicked his position prior to her improvements, and moved with her words as she continued, “That gunblade’s not even half the size of your greatsword. It’s not going to shield you and you’re not going to be able to keep your enemies in front of you every single time. So instead of working off the assumption that you can get a solid strike going forwards no matter what—” she jabbed the air at that—“be prepared to duck to the side and feint, or to back off and—” with a flick of her wrist, the Blazefire Saber became a gun “—attack from a distance.”

“Among other possibilities,” he filled in, weighing the gunblade in his hand as if this were the first time he held it.

“Yeah. If you relax then all you gotta do if, say, something comes up beside you is lash out in that direction, but if the tip of your blade is fixed on something in particular, then not only are your movements less fluid, but chances are pretty good your attention is focused on that spot, and your reaction time suffers ‘cause of it.”

He hummed thoughtfully. He couldn’t say that all that wasn’t something he hadn’t considered before, but it was certainly nothing he’d put into practice while his weapon of choice was that greatsword, which for all intents and purposes was now lost to the shadows of Valhalla. “Then shall we put it to the test?”

Lightning nodded then stepped away – several yards away, in fact – before reassuming her battle stance. Their eyes locked and, for a moment, everything froze – then Lightning lunged, and Caius mirrored her move from earlier, catching her blade on his. He was tempted just to knock her back, to do as he had done when he’d wielded that wicked greatsword and pull her upward, but refrained, instead forcing her blade to the side before turning and slashing, stopping himself short as his blade collided with her side, just as she had.

She smiled. “Fast learner, huh.” He scarcely had time to grunt in acknowledgement of the compliment before she was on him again; Lightning turned and slashed upwards this time, and Caius brought his blade up to block before she launched herself backwards, and he did the same, and then they both had the _thankfully not loaded_ barrels of their gunblades to each other’s chests.

“ _Very_ nice.” She lowered the Blazefire Saber away from his chest slowly. He followed suit, taking a full step back. “Surprised I don’t have to show you trigger discipline.”

“I’ve no plans to fire.”

“Oh? What a waste.”

“I can assure you it would be more of a waste if you were to share perfectly good ammunition with _me._ The last thing I aimed with was a bow and arrow centuries ago; _that_ endeavor did not last long.”

“Well, we’re already here – I could teach you if you really wanted.” Judging by her tone he was fairly certain that she was going to force him to learn at some point. “But fair enough. Let’s go again, see what other issues we can excise.”

The corners of his lips twitched a bit. That was precisely what she was doing, wasn’t it, at the core of everything? It was an awfully good thing that, for the foreseeable future, they were on the same side. Lightning backed away a bit, rolling her shoulder back once and reassuming her default battle stance – and he fell into the stance that she’d chosen for him. This time, neither seemed prepared to strike first, and instead they simply circled each other, eyes locked – and for the moment it was almost like Valhalla all over again, except instead of two forces clashing in the name of Etro it was this time far more benign, far more... Was friendly the word? Caius supposed it would be, given that neither was actually trying to hurt the other, although Lightning’s eyes certainly carried a challenge.

A challenge that he responded to with his own – a quirk of an eyebrow, a tilt of the head, the ghost of a smirk teasing at his lips.

This continued for longer than was probably absolutely necessary – but in a battle of wills such as this one, a victor would emerge eventually. Caius feigned action once, taking a sudden step forward before backing down again, just to see how Lightning would react – as it turned out, just as quickly, and when he backed down, she let her arms fall back to the side. Then, impatient, the Guardian lashed out for real – and Lightning easily blocked the blow, and in response let his blade slide off of hers. She moved to put some space between them before he brought his weapon up and slashed down – and when she dodged he followed the action through before, in one fluid continuation, he swept across and caught her arm with the tip of his blade as she brought her arm up to lash out at him. A little too close, a thin line of blood followed in its wake before he pulled away.

He let himself smile – but deep down, knew that he ought not let himself get too confident. She was holding back, he could tell, in the interests of teaching him how to handle her toys. And in the interests of quashing his ego, she said through quirked lips as the blue light of a healing spell whisked the thin line of blood away:

“I wouldn’t get cocky just yet, Ballad. We’re just getting started.”

 

* * *

 

For the first half of the morning, Yeul curled up on the couch and napped. She rose once more long after the sun rose and the house was starting to bustle. Serah just sat and read for most of the morning, enjoying a cup or two of coffee with so much cream that it didn’t look very much like coffee anymore, while Snow slept away in the master bedroom. She looked up when Yeul started to stir and, after the seeress pulled herself into an upright position, flashed a smile in her direction. “Good morning, Yeul. Pleasant dreams?”

“Yes. Thank you, Serah.” Yeul returned the smile after she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, then scanned the room to see Lebreau in the kitchen grumbling about _‘why can’t men clean up after themselves’_ and not really anyone else. Snow the cat was pawing around the house and Lebreau had to scoot her off of the counter several times before she got the message to stay away and eventually plunked herself down beside Yeul. The other NORA members had apparently either decided not to make their appearances yet or had come and gone while she was still lost to dreams, which was a tad disappointing but not surprising considering… Something about a zirnitra?

The seeress’s gaze fell upon the hardcover book in Serah’s hands and she scooted over closer to her so that she could see the contents of the pages – which, as it turned out, were just more of those foreign symbols that apparently made up the Cocoonite alphabet. Whatever Serah was reading, though, it was certainly interesting enough for it to hold her attention. A long few moments passed and she went through several pages before she realized that Yeul’s gaze was fixed on the pages. In response, she lowered the book a bit for Yeul to see better, although once that was done the seeress just looked up at her. “Do you like to read, Yeul?”

Lips pressed together and emerald eyes cast away, Yeul replied: “I cannot read.”

“Caius never taught you?”

“I never requested it.” When living as vagabonds, there’s generally no practical reason to transport books or any such things anyway. They traveled light and with only what they could carry by their own merits if they really had to have something – and if Yeul really wanted to hear a story, Caius had countless memorized.

“Oh.” Serah paused. “Would you like to learn?”

The seeress shrugged. “I will think about it. What are you reading?”

“The memoir of a PSICOM officer.” She frowned and continued, “It’s… pretty controversial from what I hear, and I guess I can see why some people wouldn’t like it, but...”

Yeul let her legs swing back and forth a bit, her eyes flickering a bit in curiosity. “What is a memoir?”

“Well—It’s—” Serah hummed. “Think of it like, a life story, but only in relation to certain parts of someone’s life, like their job or their travels or, well, anything, really.”

“Oh, I see. Why would a memoir be cont—cont…” Yeul spent a moment sounding out the word ‘ _controversial_ ’ to make sure that she would say it correctly. “Controversial then?”

Serah marked her page with part of the cover sleeve on the book before closing it altogether and setting it on the coffee table. She took several moments to think before she started, “Well, it’s a long story, but if you want to hear it…” Yeul’s eyes widened a bit and a smile teased at the corners of her lips. Story time—! “Alright, then. So, in Cocoon, there were two main branches of the military: the Guardian Corps, which my sister joined, and the Public Security and Intelligence Command, or PSICOM. PSICOM was the one that orchestrated all sorts of… horrible things, like The Purge, which I don’t think Caius would be very happy with me telling you much about. PSICOM’s job was to protect Cocoon from any sort of threat from Pulse… Although we all know now that the people on Pulse feared Cocoon just as much as we Cocoonites feared anything and everything related to Pulse, and there wasn’t really any immediate threat. Funny how things work out like that, I guess.

“Anyway, people hate PSICOM because of The Purge, mainly, but the thing is that they were just trying to protect Cocoon in the only way they were trained to – eliminating ‘threats’ from Pulse, like the Vestige found in Bodhum and the fal’Cie inside, or… Or Pulse l’Cie like me, my sister, Snow, Hope, and Sazh and Vanille and Fang all were.” Serah looked away. “Or innocent civilians who just happened to be caught in the crossfire, like the people of Bodhum. But what people like to forget about is that it wasn’t necessarily _PSICOM_ who are the bad guys. Sure, they were the ones that were actually _doing_ all those things, but no one knew any better back then. The public _supported_ The Purge at the time; the people _hated_ Pulse l’Cie. And even further than that, the people of Cocoon were just – controlled and lied to by the fal’Cie. And at the end of everything, PSICOM helped people relocate to Pulse after Cocoon fell, so… I don’t know, it doesn’t sit right with me that they’re all so… hated.

“The vast majority of the soldiers were chased out by everyone else, forced to leave all their friends and family behind and face the Pulsian wilderness alone, and their families continue to suffer just because they were associated with PSICOM personnel. And the soldiers that decided to stay, like Andrew Gray, the author of this book… Well, life’s tough; I’ll put it that way. The people wanted justice, but they never stopped to think about what justice actually _was_.”

Silence grew between them for a moment, and neither met each other’s eyes, but after a moment, Serah spoke once more: “Sorry, Yeul. I think – maybe I got a little too preachy there, huh.”

“It’s fine. I think I understand,” the seeress replied. “Sometimes, people do things that they wouldn’t normally, because they’re told to, or because they don’t know any better. I don’t think that those people should be blamed, either.”

Serah smiled at that. “Yeah, pretty much. I’m glad we agree on that.”

Serah picked up her book again after Yeul got up and wandered around the house for a bit with the cat in tow. She peered into the kitchen where Lebreau was preparing breakfast – something with fancy-looking bread cut in slices, eggs, milk, a red-brown powder, and some sort of brownish liquid contained in a noticeably smaller bottle than anything else she’d seen before from the looks of things, although all that stuff was set to the side with the eggs and milk mingling in the same bowl; what she seemed to be preoccupied with at the moment was cutting up some fuzzy-looking fruit that had probably been brought down from Cocoon because Yeul had certainly never seen it before – two varieties, in fact, one that was golden and another which looked to be a light pink. She lingered until she was shooed away and even then Lebreau couldn’t keep Yeul away for long, and eventually the dark-haired woman seemed to submit herself to her fate.

Snow emerged from the master bedroom after a while dressed in a simple t-shirt and shorts, and plunked himself down next to Serah. They shared a good morning kiss before the cat got between them and Snow proceeded to give her enough fuss and love to temporarily usurp the absent Yuj’s place in her heart.

Once all of the fruit was sliced up, Lebreau put it in a waiting large sauté pan, poured a bit of the brown liquid over it, added a bit of sugar, and, after a moment of hunting, pulled out a bottle with some clearish liquid in it and added that to the mix as well before stirring everything around briefly. The house promptly started filling with a sweet, fruity aroma that Yeul couldn’t describe precisely – but it made her mouth water nonetheless.

She watched for a while before she lost interest, wandering back over to the couch and leaving Lebreau to her work. A pang of disappointment struck her when she realized that there was no room to squeeze in next to Serah, with her seated on the end of the couch and Snow occupying the space to her other side, but she sucked it up and plunked down beside the tall blond man instead. He greeted her with a _‘hey’_ and a smile, both of which the blue-haired girl returned.

“So, Lightning and Caius left you with us for the day, huh?”

“Yes. I think she’s teaching him how to properly use that weapon…” She trailed off, tilting her head to the side a bit, directing her gaze to the wall opposite them. “I wonder what happened to his sword,” she muttered; it was a scary-looking thing but Yeul had gotten used to seeing him with it over the years…

“Hah, figures. Those gunblades of hers are like her pets.”

“I wouldn’t go that far, Snow,” Serah put in. And with a note of bitterness that Yeul only just barely didn’t miss completely, she added: “But I guess it means she trusts him, given… Everything.”

“I guess, also,” Yeul began with a breath, “It’s kind of nice not… having him around.” It hurt her to admit that. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Caius – he was practically her father, after all, and he rarely questioned or pressed her for reasoning when she wanted to go somewhere (or, at least, he used to; centuries seemed to have changed Caius from the man that she first met and traveled with) and he was always happy to teach her things and answer her questions whenever she asked them. She felt safe with him; he cared for her when she was upset or ill. But it was refreshing, in a way – almost liberating – to know that he wasn’t there. Likely not too far, granted, but still not within the immediate vicinity, not anywhere he could _hear_ them speak.

“You said it first,” Snow replied with a laugh. “Kinda scary.”

Serah and Snow shared a knowing glance; Yeul straightened before standing and speaking: “He’s not so bad.”

“Yeul, you... you _do_ know what he tried to do, right?” the teacher prompted.

“Yes.” She frowned. “But—that doesn’t mean—”

“Caius tried to kill Serah and Noel,” Snow put in, wrapping one arm around his fiancée.

“But he _didn’t_.”

“That doesn’t change anything.”

Yeul’s heart dropped, and she looked between Serah and Snow with a frown. “But—he was just—he’s so _old_ … And—and all he can do is watch me, and all the others—” So what she was trying to say was…

Snow’s hand came to rest on her shoulder and it took much of Yeul’s willpower not to jerk away. She let out a sigh and sat back down. The blond pulled her into a loose half-embrace, and she let her head rest against him. “I think it would be easier of you didn’t try to excuse what he’s done.”

“But—”

“Shhh, Yeul. Hear me out here,” Snow said, the edge gone from his voice. “I know you like Caius, since uh, he’s your Guardian and all or whatever. But if you just pretend like he’s perfect then no one wins. If he _had_ succeeded – then he could do all the apologizing in the world for the rest of eternity and it wouldn’t matter. The damage’d be done.” Pause. “But like you said, he didn’t. He didn’t kill Serah. He didn’t kill Noel. He _did_ kill Lightning from what I hear, but for the moment she’s kind of immortal apparently and obviously she trusts him enough to be around him alone for whatever reason. But he doesn’t need you to defend him, feel me?”

Yeul paused then nodded.

“To be fair, we don’t know much about Caius as a _person_ —well, besides you and Noel, I mean, but the rest of us don’t know. So I’m sure it’s a matter of perspective, too,” Serah added with a smile. “Maybe if he were willing to open up a little, things would be… I don’t know, easier.”

The seeress blinked and nodded once more, the beginning of a smile teasing at the corners of her lips. Snow the cat crossed over the couple’s laps and butted her head against Yeuls hand and, after a moment, she gave her what she wanted. Yeul could hear her purring and couldn’t stop herself from grinning when the cat meowed at her. Thanks to the feline she was perfectly content to let the silence grow between the three of them – and to be honest she wasn’t sure she should have brought up the subject of her Guardian in the first place knowing that there was some ugly history between him and Serah (and, by proxy, Snow).

After a while, the cat left and padded out onto the deck before flopping down on her side to soak up some of that beach sun. It was around that same time, too, that the sound of dishes being taken out of cabinets caught Yeul’s attention, and she peered over into the kitchen, bouncing slightly in her seat when she saw that Lebreau seemed to be finished cooking, and she got up and scurried over to see the finished product. Bread, apparently dipped in the eggs and milk mixture if the fact that, where it had been quite apparently starting to go stale, it now appeared to be moist underneath the fact that it was nicely browned was any indication. Out of a cabinet, she pulled out a clear bottle half-filled with syrup and poured it over top the bread after spreading some butter on it and before spooning some of the fruit on top.

It looked amazing. It probably tasted even _better_.

“Wait, wait,” the dark-haired woman said before she turned to the fridge and pulled out a can of something and squirted the contents on top – white, fluffy, light enough that it seemed to have some trouble staying on the food and fruit. After that was done with, Lebreau handed the plate, along with a fork and knife, to Yeul with a smile, and she scurried back to the couch and set the plate on the table and was about to dig in before she realized that she should probably wait for Snow and Serah – not because that sort of consideration seemed to ever be given around these parts by anyone at all, but because this occasion was, without a doubt, something special. Well, it was casual to everyone else. But to _her_ it was pretty special. It took far too long, in her mind, for Lebreau to finish two more plates and bring them over to the waiting Serah and Snow – but when she did, both pairs of eyes practically lit up.

Serah dug in almost immediately after casting a glance to Yeul, and Snow took a moment to cheer: “Al _right,_ Lebreau!” before he followed suit.

Yeul followed in short order, doing her best to get a taste of everything in the first bite – the fruit practically melted in her mouth; it was sweet and very fruity, but in a different way than the tangy white fruit that she and Caius normally had for breakfast, and the bread had the perfect amount of crunch to it, but overall didn’t taste very much like anything in particular, although perhaps only because everything else covered it up. The slight saltiness of the butter served nicely to cut through the sweetness afforded by the fruit and the syrup, although the meal probably would have been just as good without it. The seeress only just barely didn’t notice that a soft contented whimper bubbled up in her throat upon tasting it – and Lebreau smiled in response, bowing, although neither Serah nor Snow seemed to notice, being too caught up in the dish themselves.

“I’m sorry, Snow – but I think I’m going to have to marry Lebreau for this,” Serah said, leaning against the man she’d addressed, letting her fork hang from her lips for a moment before pulling it away to take another bite. Snow himself was already half finished with his portion.

“I know I won’t be that guy that objects at the reception,” Snow joked in return.

“Please! You’re too kind,” Lebreau replied before making her way back into the kitchen to fix the final plate for herself before plunking herself down on the opposite end of the couch from the other three. She, too, seemed satisfied by the final product if the noise she made was any indication. “Now that’s what I call a job well-done.”

“ _Every_ job is a job well done with you.”

Lebreau waved her fork at Snow. “Exactly! I was _one_ of the best cooks in the town before; I’m _the_ best cook in town now.”

“But how do you differentiate between the levels of goodness? It’s like…” Serah gestured uselessly and let the sentence end there, finishing off the last of her portion and setting the plate on the table.

Yeul did the same with a smile, and laughed when Lebreau replied: “I have my ways – trust me.”

The seeress held out her empty plate to the dark-haired woman. “Well—is there any way that I could have some more?”

“Of course.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... For the unlucky.
> 
> Insert FFXV joke here. Unfortunately I either didn't have the foresight to use an XV joke as the title or this chapter was XIV when I wrote it, so it just got the first thing that came to mind that was vaguely related to the chapter's contents instead.


	16. Pest Control

The weekend came – and passed. Lightning remained occupied in the mornings and caught up with the others on the zirnitra situation when she arrived back at the house with the Guardian in tow. Insofar as their little training sessions went, they generally spoke to each other only when corrections could not be made with a gentle touch or gesture. Words only really, truly, passed between them when they sought to speak of their Focus – and between those short chats and the more drawn-out conversations each evening in the alcove of the house, they formed a rough plan of action.

They would leave Friday or Saturday and head northwest to Oerba, cross the bay, and continue out to the horizon beyond. There was some unresolved debate over whether or not to allow Yeul to travel with them, but in the end they decided to leave it up to the seeress herself – the discrepancies between their visions suggested that while a Yeul was definitely involved, they decided that maybe it wasn’t necessarily the Yeul of this era. The one they’d seein in their visions looked several years too old to be this one, though even given that, they had no idea what it was supposed to mean. Given her largely immaterial nature in the visions and images that formed Lightning’s version of their Focus (disjointed, fuzzy; it was only through some sorcery that they could recall the images in any detail at all)… She may have just been present to spur him into action. Either way, the journey would be long, and while both were confident that the seeress could handle it, the awareness that perhaps staying here where she was under the protection of Serah, Noel, and the others might be smarter still ate at the backs of their minds… Even if it pained Caius to admit it.

When Caius told Yeul of their impending departure, she had cast her gaze away with a frown and was reluctant to speak with him for a few hours, instead preferring the company of the group down in New Bodhum. Part of him was happy that she’d gotten a chance to live somewhat normally – a chance she would likely never get again in her future incarnations (even given the final Yeul – but how normal was normal when you were born into a world drawing its dying breaths?) – but something about that rejection just stung. She always fell silent, of course, when the subject of his and Lightning’s Focus came up, at least ever since her vision in the middle of the night – but never had she outright ignored him, eyes looking through him as if he weren’t even there and never gesturing for him or addressing him.

He hoped that she would be there to send him off, should she choose to stay behind. At the same time – he wished for her to come with them; Yeul had for so long been his travel companion that he wasn’t quite sure that he’d be able to get used to her not being there, either close behind him or at his side or with her hand clasped in his or dozing off on his back.

Lightning brought it up to Serah as soon as the sketch of their plan had been finalized – and she smiled and requested pictures. Jokingly, the elder Farron sister had agreed – even though it was clear that she had no real intention of taking up photography – before inquiring about what sort of town they would be visiting, and though Serah admitted to not having a lot of details, it was apparent that she could perhaps pick up some of the essentials. From what Serah had heard (and told Lightning), the landscape there lent itself better to a settlement than the strand of beach that New Bodhum was situated on, so there were more people, and by proxy an overall larger town. How much larger than New Bodhum, though, was left to be seen. Worst comes to worst, Lightning could always see what sort of supplies she could borrow from the gang.

(While she was capable of traveling with little more than the clothes on her back, as her time as a Pulse l’Cie had proven, it was far more pleasant and lent her some peace of mind to be prepared in advance with a few light necessities.)

And with that, their plans were more or less set in stone.

Snow opted to take Lightning up on her offer to help kill it when she made her appearance Monday morning, and although everyone returned home safe (albeit a tad beaten and bloody), they couldn’t say the effort was successful. As always, Caius remained an observer, though this time perhaps a more helpful one when he started offering what healing he could – all of which was taken with silent thanks. The rest of the afternoon was spent trying to figure out how to deal with the zirnitra and while Caius kept his mouth shut he couldn’t help but think how they were having trouble with what surely should be a simple task seeing as at the very least Lightning and Snow had faced many of the beasts in battle before. At the very least, they knew how to avoid getting themselves killed, but…

Much of the next morning was also spent discussing and theorizing how to deal with the problem. They passed around a map of the greater New Bodhum area (on which the location of the zirnitra was marked with a red star sticker that had likely been provided by Serah, given it looked like something a school teacher might give out to their students who did well on tests or some such) as they discussed the plan, marking down things that were definitely going to happen in what appeared to be permanent marker.

“What if we split here,” Noel began, pointing at the head of the most recent arrow drawn as Lightning tossed the marker down and let it land on the table with a sharp _clack_ , “And one group attacks it from the front, and the other catches it off guard from behind?”

“Might work,” Lightning put in, “Snow could lead one group, and I could lead the other – Snow, you know some healing magic, right?”

The blond man in question gave a noncommittal shrug. “Bit rusty, but I’m sure I can manage if we need it in a pinch.”

“And I know you and Serah can heal, Noel.”

The two of them nodded.

Gadot put in, and of _course_ he had to sound like somewhat of a smartass about it (Caius fought the urge to roll his eyes every time the man opened his mouth honestly), “I’m not sure I like the idea of splittin’ up so much. Seems like it’d just make us easier to pick off if you ask me – you know, divide and conquer? Smaller groups, and a delay between them – just less at a time to focus on.”

“Shouldn’t be an issue if we’re smart about it. Here’s what I was thinking—” Lightning took the map from Noel and flipped it over onto the blank side – the marker found its way back into her hand, although the cap remained in place for the time being. “Snow and I lead two teams – yet to be determined who’s under whose command, but the basic idea is – split up and catch it off guard. It hits hard, so if we’re going to see this get done we’re going to need a full-time medic in each group. We’ll—” she tapped the marker on the table a few times, considering her next words—“We’ll probably need to act independently. But the element of surprise will be on our side, so as long as we aren’t incapacitated, we ought to be set. And once we have it off guard, then it’ll be a simple matter to kill it – from either of the angles.”

Gadot hummed thoughtfully. “Well, I guess you’ve got more experience planning this stuff than I do, so if you _really_ think it’ll work… So, after this thing’s dead – what do you suppose we do with the eggs? Smash ‘em?”

Lightning winced. “Given that if we let them hatch where they are, we’ll just be in this mess again later on – you know what, you and Yuj can figure it out.”

The blue-haired man piped up: “Wh—me? Why me?”

“You’re good with animals.”

“I’m good with _cats_ , and eggs aren’t even animals yet.”

“Like I said, you can figure it out.”

Gadot and Yuj shared a look. Gadot shrugged and Yuj let out a sigh.

“Sounds like a good plan to me,” Serah put in. “So, how’re we going to divide up?”

Lightning considered this for a moment, looking up at Snow. “I’ll take Noel, Lebreau, and Yuj; Snow, you take Serah, Gadot, and Maqui.” She scribbled something – apparently these their names – on the back of the map, then flipped it back onto the proper map side and filled in the information they just discussed in the way of their movements. “Before we set off, let’s make sure we have everything we’re going to need, _especially_ ammo.” She shot a glare at Maqui, apparently having heard some sort of story at one point or another which would seem to imply that he’d done exactly that – forget, or neglect to pack enough, ammunition – but the short blond averted his gaze. “And we can assign roles then, too.”

Snow nodded. “So when? Around two, we head out?”

“That’s reasonable.”

“Sweet.”

And with that the meeting was adjourned, and while some went to ascertain that they were prepared, others stayed behind to have a good time – after all, it was barely past ten by the time everything was wrapped up.

 

* * *

 

The air was unreasonably hot while it was still – but thankfully the cool breeze coming off the sea helped alleviate some of the discomfort. Everyone was gathered just outside of the metal fence that marked the edge of the town of New Bodhum proper, the two groups more or less lumped together but no less clearly divided down the middle. They gathered just outside of the fence that marked the boundary of the town, weapons of choice in tow and talking amongst themselves – reviewing a plan of some sort something about a preemptive strike, which those in Lightning’s group were apparently in charge of. Which worked out perfectly given the specialties of the group’s members in general – Noel, a hunter, wasn’t about to go off and do anything stupid, Lebreau was just as skilled a fighter as she was a cook, and Yuj was, while not as skilled in battle as many others, light on his feet in any case.

Well, that was everything taken care of. Duties, the plan, presumably everything they needed to carry into battle was on them already. So, all that was left…

“Lightning.”

She looked up when she heard that voice – deep and smooth. And she frowned when her eyes met Caius’s, and soon everyone present had turned to face him. The Guardian held the Organyx loosely in one hand and seemed content to ignore the hard stares of the others, his focus solely on Lightning – and after a moment of looking him over, a look of absolute befuddlement creeping to her visage before she dispelled it and once again assumed a neutral expression as she replied: “What is it, Caius?”

“Please allow me to accompany you.”

She quirked an eyebrow.

“I simply wish to make certain that the zirnitra is dealt with; I have no wish to interfere with your plans.” Honestly it shouldn’t have taken them this long to deal with it, not with Serah and Noel and Lightning on their side. Lightning alone could hold her own against him in battle in Valhalla, where he was most powerful – so this ‘zirnitra’… To require a plan and the combined efforts of three former l’Cie and Noel (whom also possessed some prowess with magic, although considerably weaker than those whom were formerly branded), it must cause far more issue than any one they’d faced before.

And Caius? Caius could reasonably say he could fell almost any monster on the surface of Gran Pulse, zirnitra included. They were actually easier to deal with than behemoths in his book, even given their aerial advantage.

“Why the sudden interest?” A stupid question, and the way his eyebrows lowered ever so slightly and his eyes darted toward the NORA house told her everything she needed to know. “Nevermind, I get it. Stupid question anyway; Yeul’s your motive for everything, isn’t she.”

Caius shifted his gaze briefly downward before giving a curt nod in response.

“Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not the one you should ask,” Lightning finished before jerking her head toward Snow, whose gaze was, for once, very hard. He’d abandoned the bandanna for the day and clipped his hair out of his eyes with some somewhat comically bright-colored hair pins, which smoothed down the rough edges a bit, but certainly not completely. Caius himself admitted to himself that he’d probably want to regard the man as a joke less if he stuck to a more subdued color scheme – or simply kept the bandanna, despite the heat. Or maybe invested in a headband.

Caius’s eyes met Snow’s, and although the armored man remained quiet, the question was apparent. After a moment’s consideration, Snow shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck. “Eh – as long as you’re here to help, I guess there’s no harm in it. You’re with me.”

Well, could have gone worse. Caius nodded in understanding and joined Snow’s cluster (although he hung back a fair bit). With nothing left to address, Lightning’s group set off, shortly followed by Snow. The groups followed their leaders with bated breath down into the Tidal Shallows and past the time gate (passing over several steep drops in the process); Lightning’s group ahead of them was dead silent while Snow’s was a bit more talkative, with the engaged couple making small talk (and, notably, casting tentative glances over their shoulders at Caius) as they hiked. There was some difficulty getting out of the crater, but eventually they made it up to the cliffs area, so far north that Caius hadn’t paid it a visit since he’d first set out in search of Yeul (and even at that time he’d only looked down on it from the air). Once up the cliffs, Lightning’s group split off in another direction – and the group Snow led fell silent. Caius could hear Gadot and Maqui cock their guns, and Serah toyed with a bolt that she withdrew from a brown leather pouch strapped to her thigh before loading it into her crossbow. Snow stretched briefly before straightening his coat, which had several patches forming a single design sewn onto the back.

As they approached another, higher set of cliffs, the precise beast that created such a notable problem for the town – for NORA and all the rest – came into view, roosting in a nest constructed out of entire branches of trees and heavy stones and carved into the exposed stone. The zirnitra was unimpressive in most aspects, although it was certainly more brightly and warmly colored than most of the beasts of that fare that he’d ever fought.

Snow stopped them then, and turned to speak: “Alright, let’s do this. What’s our motto?”

And all present save for Caius answered, in unison: “Monsters are no match for NORA!”

(Well, they certainly got points for enthusiasm.)

Then they charged and the monster stirred from its nest and took flight. Caius expanded the Organyx with a flick of the wrist, although his eyes widened when he realized that these people were idiots to think that _this_ was a _zirnitra._ It was too fast, too fierce, and its wingspan was several feet too broad—

Nonetheless, nothing that they couldn’t all handle, surely, even when the monster, from wingtip to wingtip, was noticeably larger than many of the small houses situated above the water. Maqui and Gadot started shooting at it, and the bolt that Serah loaded into her crossbow buried itself into the beast’s side flickering with flame. Caius charged, much in the same way Snow had, and he decided to take advantage of the fact that the beast was thrust into the ground by taking hold of its long tail and starting to cut off the stinger as a precautionary measure – but then the beast rose and suddenly Caius’s feet were off the ground. Still, he wasn’t a stranger to a little fall and so he let go to reassess his approach, catching the beast’s tail sharp-edge-of-the-stinger-first as he lunged forward. The stinger was sharp enough to cut through the middle joints of all his fingers and the pain was just about intense enough to bring tears to Caius’s eyes – but it was swiftly overtaken by _numbness_ , and that itself was enough to confirm his suspicions.

Not a zirnitra.

A _ziz_.

He closed his hand into a fist and hacked the stinger off, and the beast let out a screech as its tail writhed in the new absence of an end. Caius cast a weak healing spell on the cut to seal it before leaping back into the fray.

“Good! Now give it some more!”

He thought it might have been Gadot cheering, but the thought of celebrating just yet was honestly idiotic in Caius’s eyes – so he didn’t bother verifying. When the beast was hovering above him about to riddle him with bite marks, he slashed and caught a wing, forcing it backwards but splattering Caius with blood that burned what little exposed skin he had nonetheless. He wasn’t sure who, exactly, it was that sent cool blue light to envelop his body and take his wounds away, but he offered his silence as thanks nonetheless.

The winged beast squawked in surprise when Lightning landed on it and dug her gunblade into its back, forcing it back down before it twisted and threw her off. Noel slid down the cliff and began his assault while Lebreau and Yuj opted to remain at the top of the cliff, punching holes in the beast’s wings with bullets. Noel put his swords to good use and Lightning proved just how agile she could be in battle, although it was largely an effort gone wasted when the beast dove and used its wings to briefly sweep everyone off of their feet, jaws opened so that it would be ready to catch any who were close enough with its razor-sharp teeth. It bit down on Snow’s arm but a swift Ruin spell forced it off, and Serah sealed the wounds with magic – although judging by the way he held his arm whenever he was catching his breath, did not heal them completely just yet.

When the ziz next dove at Caius, he forced the Organyx’s blade into its mouth and it recoiled in pain before ascending again. A wicked smile crept to his lips – although he didn’t quite realize it as he leapt for the beast before it was completely out of reach. When the gunfire paused, he was faintly aware of himself shouting at the others to keep shooting, then its continuation; Caius himself held fast to anything he could grab onto, and while his weight kept the beast from getting too far out of range of the guns, the effect was much less than he had anticipated. All the same – making sure he wasn’t about to lose his grip and fall, he lashed out and the blade of the Organyx bit into its right wing where it connected to the rest of its body.

Another swing and the gash deepened, widened, and he was sure he’d get scolded for it later given that despite the heavy blade the Organyx was just not _built_ to handle such rough treatment, but that sure didn’t stop the violet-haired man from trying. Blood splattered onto his armor with each swing, although none got on his skin just yet – soon the ziz was grounded when he cut through the muscle powering the wing, and it landed with a thud but did not give up, flailing on the ground under Caius’s weight even as he thrust the blade into its underside and letting out the worst, most deafening screeching that he’d ever had the pleasure of hearing. Someone – he wasn’t sure who, exactly – put the poor thing out of its misery with a swift bullet through its eye, and once it was over everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The NORA members of Snow’s group took a seat on what patches of clean grass they could and Yuj and Lebreau slid down the cliff.

“Caius,” Lightning said, and the note of irritation in her voice did not go undetected on part of the Guardian. He did not meet her eyes, opting to lay on the ziz’s corpse for a few moments more.

“My apologies.”

She only huffed in response

Over from where he sat, Snow shouted his compliments to the Guardian, and it was then that Caius rose. “I wouldn’t celebrate yet.” He ran his hand through his hair, making sure everything was in order. His fingers came away bloody – and while if the blood stung or burned he couldn’t feel it past the numb tingling, he was fairly certain that the blood was the ziz’s.

“Why? It’s dea—” an abrupt holler of celebration, then a sigh from Maqui before he resumed—“It’s _dead_! Finally!”

“… … … Right.” He cast a sweeping glance to the rest of the group, a golden glow enveloping his free hand as he flexed his fingers and waited for feeling to return to them. “The blood of a _ziz_ – which we just _killed_ – will leave burns if not washed off.” Lightning, Snow, and Noel exchanged looks. “Healing magic isn’t enough to nullify its effects. It’ll continue to damage tissues for as long as it’s in contact.”

“Let’s get washed off, then,” Lightning called, crossing her arms. “Yuj, deal with the eggs.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve got it.” The blue-haired man approached the nest before taking one of the eggs in his arms, bug enough around that he had to cradle it in both of his arms to avoid dropping it at his feet.

And as he started away, Caius called after him: “Be careful with it. The egg whites are corrosive.”

With a huff, Yuj replied, “Great; guess we won’t be making omelets, then.”

Gadot came up behind him and gave him a firm pat on the shoulder. “Let’s just get this done and get goin’. This is the _easy_ part.”

“Yeah, yeah…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I knew from the start that thsi chapter was gonna run a bit on the late side but I didn't know it would run _this_ late, haha! Sorry 'bout that one. Just needed to revise a bit and catch up on buffer!
> 
> Things are going to start happening, and they will start happening quickly.


	17. As the Dust Settles

Yeul had been left alone with her thoughts for the majority of the afternoon while the others fought the beast – and she breathed a sigh of relief when they all returned with very few open wounds (although some bore visible bruises that apparently Cure had not been enough to heal). She sat back on the couch with a bottle of water in her hands and let her feet swing back and forth as they all filed in – Lebreau and Lightning went immediately to the kitchen while Serah stole the bathroom for a few moments before she and Snow slipped into the master bedroom, with Snow shedding his coat and nudging the door closed as he went. The other three NORA members filled the empty space on the couch, with Gadot the furthest from Yeul and Yuj practically right next to her; the seeress smiled up at him in greeting. Noel and Caius lingered a bit outside, just out of view and just out of earshot, although they were certainly talking about _something._ But whatever that was could wait, she supposed.

“Hope you didn’t miss us too much, Yeul _,_ ” Yuj said.

Yeul shrugged. “I took a nap.” She hoped Noel didn’t mind her borrowing his bed, but she’d made it again as best she could after she woke up. “So I was fine.”

Maqui leaned back in his seat. “Nice! Man, you know, after that battle – _I_ could kind of go for a nap.”

The seeress smiled a little. “You could take one.”

“Yeah – I _could_ , but then I’d miss celebrating finally being done with that damn thing; right, Lebreau? We _are_ gonna have some fun, right?”

The final words, he shouted into the kitchen, and the dark-haired woman paused in her conversation with Lightning and responded with: “Yeah?” The question in her voice was only just barely there and apparently went disregarded by the blond, who just put his hands up and cheered, earning an elbow to the side from Yuj. Yeul smiled a little in response, though it slowly faded when Noel and Caius joined them, their conversation apparently over and apparently having gone well if both of their apparent (relatively, in Caius’s case) good moods were anything to go by.

Yeul greeted them both with a nod, which Caius returned as Noel took a seat by Gadot, leaving Caius to fill in the space next to Yeul – though apparently sensing her reluctance to speak with him, he remained a respectful distance away. If Lightning and Lebreau weren’t otherwise occupied in the kitchen, one of them could have probably squeezed into the space between them, although it meant being literally shoulder to shoulder with both of them. As an experiment, he extended a hand toward his charge, which she stared blankly at for a moment but, much to his visible disappointment, did not take. Noel chewed his lip for a moment, apparently concerned by this development before deciding that there were better things to focus on than whatever was going on between the seeress and her Guardian. Yeul didn’t know if he knew. She hoped he didn’t, but considering that Noel was about the only person on truly friendly terms with Caius, she wouldn’t be surprised if he did.

She cast her gaze away from Caius almost guiltily, instead focusing on and conversing softly with Yuj. The other four were left to their own conversation – which tended to be about the just-passed battle although occasionally strayed into other subjects, at which point Caius generally fell silent and left them to it until he was pulled back in again. At some point, Maqui shouted once more into the kitchen—“Hey, Lebreau, can we get some drinks?”

“Yeah, if you’re gonna come get them,” Lightning answered for the woman in question before popping a small cube of white cheese into her mouth.

Maqui groaned. “But I’m trapped here—look!”

“Hop over the table for all I care.”

Lebreau laughed at that. “Cut ‘im a break,” she said to Lightning, then shouted to Maqui: “Yeah, I’ll give you drinks – but you’ll be _workin_ ’ for ‘em later!” All in good humor, of course.

She had already started pulling stuff out to make them all their drinks of choice when Maqui yelled back with a laugh: “Yes ma’am!”

“Hey, Caius—want anything before I start makin’ these?”

Caius paused before shrugging. “If you see fit to make something for me – alcoholic or non – I certainly won’t turn it down.”

And at that Noel shot a look to Lebreau and the dark-haired woman smiled before setting to work. Lightning came over to the main group when she started her work and set the tray of small cheese cubes on multicolored toothpicks – some white, like the ones she’d been eating, others white with flecks of other things in them, others bright orange. The white ones were about half-gone already; after a moment’s consideration, Caius selected the cheese with flecks in it and pulled it off its toothpick with his teeth. Not finding the taste objectionable – quite the opposite, actually – he went for another one shortly after. And then a third before he finally leaned back and caught Yuj staring at him. He hummed, egging him on until he finally spoke—“Isn’t that _hot_?”

It was Caius’s turn to look mildly befuddled, although the look on his face was replaced with one of complete and utter neutrality in short order. “No?” After a brief pause, he nicked one last cube of the cheese just to make sure. It had a little bit of a kick to it – but it wasn’t particularly intense, and after all was said and done it left a bit of a buttery taste in his mouth.

“But – it has _peppers_ in it.”

Caius shrugged. Lots of things had peppers in them; he’d never had a problem with any supposedly spicy foods before, and he wasn’t really about to start now.

Maqui taunted Yuj a bit about it, eventually getting the blue-haired man to try a cube of the ‘spicy’ cheese – which he promptly found to be a little too hot for him. Maybe it was a Cocoonite thing; he resisted the urge to join in the taunting about it and just looked on with that familiar smirk creeping to his lips. It couldn’t be Yuj’s fault that he didn’t have the tolerance for it. Maqui kept teasing though, pressuring him into continuing to eat the cheese and, apparently never one to back down from such a challenge, the blue-haired man just kept going along with it. The drinks didn’t arrive until a few moments after Yuj started to become visibly uncomfortable; mercifully, Lebreau handed him his glass first, which had a slice of lime and salt crystals sticking to the rim and contained a lime green liquid. Then Maqui, whom indulged in a similar drink, and Gadot whose beverage was bright red. Those being all the glasses she could carry, she stepped back into the kitchen to retrieve the last three: a bright blue (!) cocktail (!!?) for Noel and a pink, half-frozen-looking one for Lightning, both of which were served in stemmed glasses with a slice of lime stuck on the rim for aesthetic. And for Caius, she brought a cocktail with the colors of a sunset; he quietly bowed his head in thanks and took the glass.

A moment later, Caius said: “You’re old enough to drink here?”

And in response, Noel shrugged. “Might be; this doesn’t have any alcohol in it, though.” That put to rest Caius’s true curiosity, and the Guardian nodded and took a sip of his drink; it tasted distinctly of pineapple but there was a note of tartness left in his mouth that he wasn’t quite sure how to feel about. If there was alcohol in it then _he_ certainly couldn’t taste it – but if there was, he was sure that he’d _feel_ it eventually.

“Noel’s got three years before he’s old enough to get the tequila in that drink,” Lebreau called from the kitchen as she worked on finally fixing up something for herself, and a moment later and she returned with her own bright yellow cocktail. And a box of apple juice for Yeul. Snow and Serah emerged then in swimming clothes – swim trunks and a loose-fitting shirt for Snow and a one-piece swimsuit for his fiancée covered only by a white garment that was held up only by the virtue of fresh elastic just under her arms and which fell to her knees.

The Farrons conversed, briefly, and Serah promised their swift return, while Snow readily revealed to the group that he and Serah were going to go for a swim while the sun was still up – and everyone nodded and allowed it, although the three Farseers shared glances that told each other that no, no one was precisely sure why, given Snow’s fresh-bandaged arm and the salinity of the water making it wholly unpleasant to get in one’s eyes or mouth (and they were fairly certain that they could rest assured that given how rough the waves were as they collided with the shoreline – a far cry from their usual tranquility – that they would absolutely be getting seawater in their mouth and maybe eyes). But no one objected; it was the remainder of their afternoon to do with as they wished. Gadot rose and followed them, apparently wishing to sit outside and away from the clamor or perhaps meaning to cross the strand to his abode (whichever one of the various small houses set up above the sands and water it happened to _be_ ) – he gave no indication one way or the other, really.

The conversations around him kicked up a bit as everyone helped themselves to what little was left of the cheese and their respective drinks and once again Caius was content to be an observer – and he figured that perhaps it had always been that way, given his icy demeanor – even centuries ago, when he’d first become Guardian, it was rare that someone would describe him as ‘ _personable_ ’. But he preferred it that way, after all; it was easier to maintain a façade when no one wished to or could be bothered to get close enough to break it.

(Besides, he felt he had nothing to contribute; after all, his life was not a relaxed one and certainly not one with the slow-going kind of whimsy that this ragamuffin group had had for the past years – not one where he’d forged enough close bonds with _anyone_ , save for the various Yeuls, to talk so openly about things such as “What about that one time I drank so much coffee that you thought I needed to see a doctor?” (courtesy of Maqui) or “Remember the first time we came across Snow – like, the cat?” (from the mouth of Yuj, and much to all present’s dismay, said cat did not make an appearance on cue).)

Yeul reached for his hand (and he allowed it, and at a point squeezed her hand slightly and earned a smile from the blue-haired girl) while Maqui and Yuj laughed like hyenas about some obscure happening in regards to the town’s formation. Lebreau rolled her eyes, and Lightning swapped places with Noel so that he sat on the floor rather than her. Etro’s champion was, similarly to the Guardian, content to be an observer – she sipped at her drink slowly and polished off the rest of the white cheese.

He slowly came to be fond of the taste of his drink – tartness and all, and despite the alcohol he was starting to feel he couldn’t pay much mind to it over the pineapple which, in his extremely unprofessional opinion, tasted like sunshine would if sunshine had a taste (perhaps it ought to hve struck him as ironic, seeing as he built himself up to be a creature of darkness). By the time everyone had whittled their drinks down to around a fourth of their glasses (and he, around half of his) he was definitely starting to feel its effects, apparently just as were the two youngest NORA members and Lebreau. Lightning seemed, judging solely from appearances, no worse for the wear. Caius hoped he managed just as well, but he knew it just wasn’t to be when Lightning looked up at him with a smirk; he huffed a bit in response and took another sip of his cocktail while Yeul laughed softly and leaned against him. He drew her close, one arm around her shoulders, and for a moment whatever had troubled her seemed forgotten.

Good. Yeul’s time was short – well, she had a good number of years ahead of her, but for an immortal such as he even that was too short – and she deserved to enjoy it; she deserved smiles and laughter, even if the fate of all the seeresses (all the _Yeuls_ ) seemed to be at odds with that wish.

Despite his wishes, Caius was not allowed to remain on the sidelines for long, although he hummed a bit when he didn’t quite catch Yuj’s words before asking him to repeat them. After a moment (and a sigh), he complied: “You’re a pretty quiet guy, aren’t you?”

Lightning snorted at the very idea – ‘ _Caius Ballad, quiet, yeah right_ ’ was written all over her face; Caius shrugged and answered: “There is nothing to say.”

“There’s always something to say, man!” Maqui put in. “You’ve been listening to us all this time, huh, you know how it goes. I could be talkin’ about upgrades for our guns one moment and then the next, Gadot could be _roasting_ me for something or another. And then maybe for good measure, Serah or Snow’ll start talkin’ big stuff with board games, and I’d be like _‘oh yeah prove it´_ and then they’d prove it to me, alright…” Maqui let out a sigh then, sitting back in his seat. Either the blond’s drink had more alcohol in it than the others’ or Maqui was a major lightweight; probably the latter, given that besides Yeul he was easily the shortest one in the room (and Yeul was _nine_ ). “Anyway, point is – you don’t gotta _wait_ for the topic to suit you; you can basically just say whatev—oops.” He went to gesture with the hand he was holding his drink in and the contents of the glass almost swished over the rim of the glass. He took care to set his drink down on a coaster before he continued on, just as animated as he was before he’d been forced to pause. “You should talk more! It’s _creepy_ how you just _watch_!”

Caius just looked at him for a moment, one eyebrow arched. Where both of the boys failed, though, Lebreau succeeded in making an actual request: “Tell us about yourself, man! People like you don’t just have no stores to tell.”

He wasn’t sure whether to be offended or not. After a moment’s consideration, he set his glass down (and the boys looked at him with expectant stars in their eyes). “Stories – of course. I killed a man with this thumb once.” He held up his right thumb to illustrate his point before he continued, each word free of any inflection that would hint as to whether he was actually serious or not. “He was scum and I was working a literal graveyard shift before I became Guardian. The end; I hope your appetites have all been satiated now.”

“That’s all you’re giving us? C’m _ooooooon_ ,” Maqui attempted to egg – although his words were only met with a shrug and the retrieval of a well-deserved drink from the Guardian.

“I wouldn’t want to damage your fragile sensibilities; at this point you’ve not even been half a decade out of that cage. I doubt you’re ready to hear about life in the Gran Pulse wilderness just yet.” He smirked then, and took a long sip from his glass before continuing, “Even Yeul’s steeled to it more than you lot – save for Noel and perhaps Lightning.”

“Hmph. ’ _Perhaps Lightning.’_ Thanks for the confidence, Caius; remember that later,” the rose-haired woman in question snipped, staring him down.

“You’re welcome. I will.”

Over that brief exchange, though, Lebreau’s voice rang loud and clear: “ _Fragile_? You saw us out there today, didn’t you? That’s just _one_ of the things we’ve done with our so-called _‘fragile sensibilities’_!” She huffed to punctuate her claim. “It’s not like taking on the military back on Cocoon was any walk in the park either, _oooh no_. While Snow, Lightning, and all the rest were out to play, we had to keep hundreds of the Purge survivors _alive_ and out of sight of PSICOM! Life in the Gran Pulse wilderness my _ass_ ; insofar as I’m concerned it’s like a camping trip!”

For the first time in a long time, Caius was actually stunned to silence. Wide-eyed, he opened his mouth but no words would come out – and while his lips still retained the slight curve of a smile, the one sound he did manage was somewhere between a clipped laugh and a bemused “Uh????” that at the same time managed to somewhat make him sound like he was choking – and in that instant Caius was sure that he’d never made such a sound before and never would again for the sake of his dignity. The boys broke down into snickers, then giggles – and Yuj had to cover his mouth and attempt to take deep breaths to avoid outright cackling. Lightning made no effort to spare him her opinion of the moment that just passed and by the time he regained his composure she’d just barely recovered from a fit of giggles that forced her to set her drink down. Caius looked to Noel, who refused to make eye contact, but whose only-half-suppressed smile was _unmistakable_. The only one present that seemed to not take some cheap amusement from his momentary lapse in self-respect was Yeul, and he sure hoped that it wasn’t because it paled in comparison to some other unbecoming moment she recalled from one of her past lives that he simply didn’t immediately recall due to the sheer length of eternity.

“You practically asked for that one, Ballad,” Lightning managed after a moment.

All he had to say for himself was, “Maybe I did.”

Noel clicked his tongue and shook his head. “Set up for failure from the beginning, huh.”

“Don’t encourage them.”

“I don’t think making an observation is encouraging them, exactly… _But_ you know.” The brunet shrugged. “Weren’t you gonna indulge their curiosities, though? Gotta admit that I’d like to hear one of your stories, Caius.”

“There is nothing to tell,” the Guardian insisted, taking another sip of his drink and briefly adjusting his headband.

“What about that time you felled a behemoth king when you took me to the ruins of Paddra for the first time?” Caius froze when Yeul spoke, pressing his lips together a bit. She continued, “And the sunrise we saw when we got there?” Pause. “Or about how you became Guardian – or how you got your name?”

“Those require… far too much context, Yeul.”

The seeress cast her emerald gaze away, crestfallen. “Oh…”

“I’m sorry, Yeul.”

She shook her head in response. “You should tell them _something_ … You have lots of stories. _I_ like them. They should, too.”

“C’mon, tough guy,” Yuj chirped, “It’s six-versus-one – spill!”

Caius huffed and set his glass down again, crossing his arms over his chest. For several moments it appeared that he’d opted to clam up, much to everyone’s visible disappointment – then he spoke again, and when he did he made no effort to dull the edge in his voice: “Fine. If you all _insist_ , then I will share with you one of my shorter anecdotes.” He didn’t miss the way that Maqui and Yuj’s eyes lit up as Caius himself straightened and let his hands fall into his lap. “Prior to becoming Yeul’s Guardian,” he began, and it seemed that those with more alcohol in their system were captivated by those first words – while Lightning (with little) along with Yeul and Noel (with _none_ ) merely gave him their attention in the same manner as they would anyone who’d taken center stage. “I was a simple warrior – though, I suppose I must have been good at it if nothing else, given that I earned the nickname _‘Caius of the Ballads’_ …”

“Faking humility doesn’t work very well for you,” Lightning said, swirling her drink around in her glass.

He let out a noise that was caught somewhere between a chuckle and an amused hum. “Yes? And whosoever implied I was faking? As much as possible, I try to avoid, as we used to say, preening my own feathers.”

“ _Right_. Anyway.”

“Anyway,” Caius repeated with a stiff nod, “My services, along with the services of a few other notorious warriors, were once called upon to deal with a rakshasa that had come down from the mountains and had begun attacking those foolhardy enough to walk the streets of Paddra in the early hours of the morning. I accepted only because I needed the money for my bread and board. The first night, no one saw or heard of anything. The second, we each patrolled a separate part of the city a warrior was attacked – and although he survived, he was hospitalized and the incident forced many of the inexperienced warriors to bow out.”

Which suited him just fine, frankly, although he was definitely skimping on a few of the details for Yeul’s sake – although he’d definitely seen the end result of the attack. It hadn’t been pretty and he couldn’t blame the warriors who bowed out for doing so; if he hadn’t required the money then he likely would have, too, after seeing the damage that the rakshasa could do.

“The third night, I was accosted by a visitor, though not my mark despite how similar the silhouette looked in the darkness. It struck me as a bit strange that a woman my height but built of wires would wander alone in the back alleys of the city with a rakshasa loose, but knowing what I know now, I can safely say that that night was the first time I truly encountered our primary patron fal’Cie. We wandered the city and conversed until dawn broke – and the rakshasa did not strike that night.

“On the fourth night, the rakshasa managed to not only run into each of the warriors stationed around the city in its search for prey, but got itself killed, when another warrior – Paddra Myst-Cuore – and I attacked it from behind. We divided the useful remains and the reward between us and went our separate ways.” He retrieved his glass from the table and took a sip. “That’s it.”

“That’s _it_? Talk about anticlimactic,” Maqui complained, and Caius shot him a glare so sharp that the blond’s gaze actually snapped away.

“I have more exciting stories, but they are not for your ears. That’s all I care to share – take it or leave it.”

“Fine, fine…”

 

* * *

 

The end of the day was marked by the quickly-darkening sky, but on account of the somewhat special circumstances, the group did not part ways at sunset. Sometime after Maqui conquered Caius in checkers (although, much to the boy’s chagrin, he returned the favor when they broke out the chess pieces), Serah and Snow made their reappearance, hair still damp from their dip in the water and smelling like the sea (in a way that, admittedly, wasn’t unpleasant at all). Sand clung to their bodies in some places, although they seemed to have made efforts to clean themselves off before entering – but on the beach, there really was no way to escape its grainy wrath. Serah lingered with the group, conversing with most present in what was probably a louder voice than was really necessary (although no one save Caius seemed to mind, and Caius wasn’t really one to talk given how resonant his own voice was…) while Snow slipped into the bathroom after retrieving a change of clothes. When he emerged, Serah took her turn, first slipping into their bedroom for clothes and then into the bathroom at the very back of the house, the doorway of which was concealed from view by most angles.

It was at that point that the Guardian saw it fit to excuse himself out to the deck (taking his yet-unfinished drink out in the process), away from all the imminent noise; Yeul rose to follow him but apparently decided to change her mind when Serah joined the group at last, hair pulled back in a messy bun and filling the space that Caius had left on the couch.

The setting sun took with it the heat of the day, leaving naught but the cool sea breeze to blow in off of crystal clear water. Some people had decided to come out and take a stroll along the water’s edge, some carrying buckets and flashlights for whatever reason but most simply enjoying the last few moments of the day. The houses supported by stilts above the water were alive with dim lights emanating from the inside and some candles and lanterns decorating the outside; it was really only then that Caius found himself realizing that this was an actual town. It was a far cry from Paddra in its prime or from what he had seen of Academia far in the future, but people besides those that hung out at the NORA house actually inhabited this place, called it home, contributed in some way to the community that had, over its thus-far-brief history, formed here.

It was too bad that his time here was somewhat limited. After he and Lightning (and perhaps Yeul, if she was willing to go; if not, he trusted Noel enough to look after her) left in a few undoubtedly short days, who knew when they’d be back. His stay would likely not be permanent.

“Enjoyin’ the view?” Caius cast a glance over his shoulder in time to see Snow approach, a glass half-filled with an off-gold liquid in one hand and a brown bottle with a label he couldn’t read in the other. When the blue-eyed man reached his side, he offered Caius the bottle – but the Guardian ultimately turned it down after deciding that it didn’t smell appealing or suitably nonalcoholic and he definitely didn’t need any more of _that_. There was still a measurable amount left in the glass; he didn’t feel particularly impaired, granted, but he’d seen over centuries what alcohol could do to a good man and he’d rather not see what it’d do to him. In response, Snow poured around a quarter of the bottle’s contents into his glass, replenishing it, before taking a long sip. “Admittedly, kinda wish we could see the sun set over the water, but hey, the stars are great, too. Nice change.”

Caius gave a noncommittal shrug. “There are hundreds of beaches like this one; some nicer.”

“Sure there are.” Snow didn’t seem to question it at all; actually, it sounded more like he accepted Caius’s statement as a fact. “But we picked this one, and there sure isn’t more than one New Bodhum around.” He gestured north into the distance, where Cocoon was visible perched atop its crystal pillar. “Plus, bet you’d be hard-pressed to find a view of Cocoon like this one.”

“That’s fair.” Caius didn’t think that Cocoonites loved to have that reminder of everything that had been lost looming on the horizon so much – but that was their thing. And it was easier to (reminder or otherwise) admire a sphere encased in intricate crystal that made itself a permanent fixture on the horizon for thousands of miles around than it was to admire the ruins of city tucked away in the mountains, he supposed. The former had some aesthetic value, at least. The armored man paused before continuing: “Did you need something?”

“Nah. Just wanted to keep you a little company,” Snow explained. Caius scoffed before the blond continued, “Yeah, I know you’re more of the solitary type, but since Yeul’s keepin’ us company, I just. You know. Figured.” He shrugged then.

“There’s no need to be concerned about me, but thank you anyway.”

“Then I won’t be concerned. I’ll just keep you company ‘cause I wanna. Dunno what you did but everyone else seems chill about you bein’ here.”

“That works too.” Caius managed a smile at that. “You all seem a lot more accepting of my presence with the addition of some alcohol.”

“Well, you seem a lot more relaxed with some in yours. Lebreau’s cocktails, huh; nothin’ beats ‘em.” He took a sip of the drink in his glass, which was definitely not a cocktail. “I mean, they’re a little fruity for me, so for times like these I just pop open a bottle or three of beer, but hey. You know how it goes, yeah?”

He really didn’t, but he nodded in affirmation anyway. “You drink often, then?”

“Well – occasionally; I wouldn’t say _often_. I’m guessing you don’t?”

“That cocktail was the first sip of alcohol I’ve had in centuries.”

“Seems to me like you needed it, frankly.”

He shrugged in response. “Maybe. I don’t intend to make it a habit.”

“Eh, fair enough.” Snow shrugged. “It ain’t for everyone, that’s for sure.”

They mutually agreed to let the silence grow between them for a moment; after a bit of time they could hear Noel, Yuj and Maqui cheering about something inside and Lightning shouting at them to settle down, or something to that effect. Caius looked over his shoulder at that to make sure everything was alright inside before Snow explained softly that everyone gets really pumped about board games. Caius knew that already, but he wasn’t sure he understood the reasoning behind that. But as long as they were all having fun inside, no harm no foul, really; they weren’t hurting anyone. The blond went on to mutter something about _‘or maybe they’re doing shots…’_ but Caius didn’t dignify that with an answer, his expression briefly hardening if only on account of the fact that that sounded like a _very_ bad idea.

After a while, Snow prompted: “So uh, got any hobbies?”

Caius hummed. “There’s no room for hobbies in my life.”

“None at all? Really?”

“Most of my time is dedicated to Yeul in some way.” He couldn’t even complain about it, instead flashing a smile at the other man.

“Oh, yeah… Lightning said something about that earlier, didn’t she. ‘Fore we left.” He cleared his throat before apparently making an honest attempt at an impression of the woman in question: “ _’Yeul’s your motive for everything.’_ How’d I do?”

Caius chuckled a bit. “If you sounded more unimpressed, you would have nailed it. But her words ring true. I—it’s a bit of a natural consequence of being in my position.” He paused, searching his eyes for any hint that he knew what he was talking about – and was satisfied when Snow looked a little bit lost, but did not explain. Only after a bit of consideration, after Snow shrugged in acceptance of the fact that there were just some things that not even alcohol could pry out of Caius, did he continue quietly: “I suppose I owe you an apology.” Snow blinked, and Caius’s shift in tone was not lost on him – but he remained quiet, and the silence urged the Guardian beside him onward: “I attempted, on multiple occasions, to kill or injure Serah, Lightning, and Noel.” He wasn’t a hundred percent sure how Snow felt about Noel, but given that he seemed to be living with them, he figured that they were at least friends.

“Do you think a few words like that’ll make it better?”

“No. And I don’t expect it to. The words are more for my sake than for yours.” Caius bowed his head at that. Snow regarded him with silence for a few moments, pouring the remainder of the contents of the bottle into his glass and topping it off once more before taking a long, long sip – so long that when he lowered the glass again, it was back to its initial level.

“Uh- _huh_...” Pause. “Hey – I’m gonna be honest with you. I’m not sure I can honestly accept your apology. ‘Cause if you succeeded, I would have lost the love of my life forever. Serah could have lost her sister – the only family she’s got left – if you succeeded. But I’m gonna act like I do—” he set the bottle down on top of the wood barrier before giving Caius a firm pat on the shoulder—“for Yeul’s sake. She’s pretty bent on us likin’ you, and in light of today’s victory, I figure the least I could do is make an effort. Fake it ‘til you make it, right?”

Violet eyes were cast away and the Guardian nodded.

“Anyway, enough of that. Time’s short, right?”

“Yes. Lightning and I will be leaving at the end of this week – Friday or Saturday, depending on how things work out.”

“Sucks. But for people like you two, you may as well be back within the hour, yeah? Lightning doesn’t talk about the specifics of your Focus much but it doesn’t seem to involve a lot of resistance.”

“It doesn’t, no…” Hopefully. “The most difficult part will be getting there, I figure. If all goes well then Lightning will be back before you know it, and I will part ways with you all once and for all.”

“You’re that ready to be rid of us, huh?” A smirk crept to Snow’s lips then, and Caius rolled his eyes in response. “What? Seems like you’re in a hurry.”

“I don’t expect you to understand the cultural doctrines behind my will to leave – but I can certainly assure you that it’s not because I find you people or this place to be particularly unpleasant.” Caius cast his gaze into the remainder of his drink – watered down by melted ice and honestly unappealing but, figuring it rude not to finish, he downed the rest of the glass’s contents in one go.

Snow hummed a bit. “Don’t be so quick to shortchange us, now. I’m nicer than Lebreau is even accounting for alcohol, but we try to be a pretty understanding bunch.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. Don’t sound so surprised. But eh – can’t say I don’t blame you, I guess; according to Lightning you’re pretty old, so...”

“Is it safe to assume she means it in the most unflattering way possible?”

“From an observer’s perspective, yeah, I guess.”

Caius laughed a bit at that. “Well, she is not wrong.”

“Can I get a number on that, then?”

“Fourteen centuries, six decades, and seven years.”

Snow let out a low whistle and brought his glass to his lips briefly before lowering it again. “Rough.”

“More than you know.” The Guardian shook his head slowly and then continued on with a dismissive hand gesture. “That’s what you _get_ for managing to get on a deity’s good side, although Etro has been far more merciful toward you and the other former l’Cie.”

Snow arched an eyebrow then, resting his weight and his glass on the partial wall that divided the raised deck from the ground below. “ _E_ tro?” He took a moment to process the name, one finger coming up to scratch the side of his face as he let the gears spin.

“The goddess. Lightning served Her in Valhalla as my adversary.”

“ _Oh_ – gotcha.” Pause. “Wait… H—”

“I’d rather not you asked.”

“Sounds like you need another cocktail in you.”

Caius rolled his eyes and couldn’t hide the wry smile that crept to his lips. “Maybe later.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Things will happen quickly after this" I may have lied last chapter. Things will happen quickly after THIS. The chapters following this are strictly plot. This was just a chapter I wanted to treat myself to writing since I love the NORA gang&co.


	18. A Moment's Respite

The moon, in due time, rose high in the sky, and the stars peeked through the veil of darkness that the sun left in its wake when it disappeared over the horizon. They wove stories, pictures across the night sky – interrupted only by a fleeting silhouette, pitch-dark and lined in silver, if one cared enough to look. The town below was bathed in what little golden light filtered out of the houses and in silver moonlight from the sky above and the few who decided to come out onto the deck of the NORA house looked like ants from their perspective, little more than smudges of color against a mostly-dark background. They flew in lazy circles over the town of New Bodhum on the back of Bahamut, Caius’s back against the ridge on his eidolon’s back and Yeul held securely in his arms and against his chest. They were silent – and the seeress, at least, was content to absorb the view with wide emerald eyes, leaving Caius to silently command and carry on a conversation with his eidolon.

The dragon’s voice rang clear in his head, though to Yeul the dragon was silent and content to simply be the avenue through which, for once, she and Caius could get some privacy, some time away from the noise of the celebration at the NORA house or the tension that hung in the air at the house that for all intents and purposes save for the ones that actually _mattered_ they supposed they could call a home.

Caius grunted softly and opened his eyes; Yeul looked up in response and he quickly hushed any growing fears by pulling her closer. But the curiosity in her eyes did not die away, and so he prompted with a low chuckle: “Do you know what it’s like to argue with yourself, Yeul?”

She laughed a bit – but it was joyless, dry; foreign-sounding coming from her lips and certainly foreign to his ears. “Maybe. Is Bahamut giving you trouble?”

“A bit.” One hand slipped from Yeul’s waist and was promptly balled into a fist and struck against metal; Bahamut did not flinch underneath them, but let out a low, almost amused growl in response. “I liked him better before he started talking back.”

 _“I was not talking back; I was offering a suggestion. Upon_ your _request,”_ Bahamut’s voice echoed in the farthest reaches of Caius’s consciousness before he tuned the eidolon out altogether and at once it was just him and Yeul again.

She smiled a little. “Is it not an easily dealt-with issue?”

“It is.” Pause. “Yeul?”

“Yes?”

“Has something been bothering you?”

She fell silent before pressing herself back into Caius’s chest, letting her head rest against his shoulder. She knew she could – probably – trust Caius. She knew that he had her best interests at heart. She knew that he wouldn’t intentionally hurt her, knew that she could bend him to her will as easily as mold a lump of soft, colorless clay from a riverbed with her hands. So why was it so difficult to trust him with this – why did she kill the words on her lips every time the subject came up?

Well, she supposed, they were alone now, and there was no use in lying to him.

“Yes. But I cannot tell you what it is. I’m sorry.”

He hummed, accepting her answer. “I understand. I will be here whenever you are ready. I _must_ receive an answer to _this_ now, however… Will you accompany Lightning and I when we depart?”

She regarded this with more silence, taking the words into consideration – for real this time. As it begun to appear that she’d decided to ignore him again, she finally responded: “No. I will stay.” That was, after all, the way things ought to be…

“That’s fine. I will leave you under Noel’s care.” He was, after all, Caius’s former apprentice, and the strongest candidate to succeed him as Guardian should that time ever come (though if it did, it was certainly not any time _soon_ , given his stubborn adherence to his damned values…).

“But in exchange, there’s… One thing.”

“I am here to listen to your every request, Yeul. Go on.”

She swallowed. Was she perhaps, just being a bit selfish? Had any of the Yeuls before or after her requested something like this of him? Surely they had. There were hundreds upon hundreds, many of which Caius never even spoke of. The Guardian pulled her into a loose embrace, encouraging her to speak, and she figured she ought to, but took a moment to allow herself the comfort of Caius’s warmth before she let any words slip past her lips. “I want you to promise me something.”

“Hm?”

“Please come back. You _have_ to. No matter what.”

Her words were hard, absolute, and in response Caius’s expression became very, deadly serious. “It is done.”

Pause, before Yeul covered one of his hands with both of hers. “I want you to say it.”

“I promise you, Yeul, that I will do _everything_ in my power to return to you after this is all over.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short and sweet. On purpose.


	19. A Scant Remainder

They didn’t part ways until the moon had reached its highest point in the sky, but all good things had to come to an end eventually. Alcoholic drinks quickly gave way to glasses of water and the board games were stowed away and words gradually became softer and more subdued than they had earlier in the night – until Snow and Serah finally retired to the master bedroom for the night. Gadot and Maqui lingered just a bit longer, and before too long Yuj took his leave as well. Noel turned in not long after, leaving only Lightning, Lebreau, Caius, and Yeul – the last of which was dozing off in her Guardian’s lap.

A tell-tale sign that they ought to be getting back to _their_ house for the night – though the seeress didn’t seem willing to move.

Lightning conversed softly with Lebreau, helping her tidy the kitchen and get clean glasses and dishes back to where they ought to be in the cabinets. Neither woman looked up when Caius gathered Yeul in his arms and stood, but Lightning acknowledged the soft sound of his footsteps against the wood with a grunt and Lebreau looked up when he passed by. “Leaving?”

His gaze briefly drifted to the girl in his arms. “Yes.”

“Well, be careful then. The path up the cliffs has a bunch of monsters this time of night.”

“There’s no need to worry about me.” He bowed his head. “Thank you, though.”

“Hey, no problem. You did us some good today. Provisional government dudes said if we couldn’t deal with it on our own then we’d have to get some troops stationed here to defend the town.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Would that have been a problem?”

“On Cocoon, NORA was a vigilante group,” Lightning put in, holding a glass up to the light to make sure there were no spots left on it before drying it with a rag and turning to the cupboard to put it away. “Didn’t much like the military steppin’ on their toes.”

“Military didn’t like us stepping on their toes, either. But you know—” she turned to Lightning—“Lieutenant Amodar was pretty lenient, so it didn’t make much difference.”

“I see…” That could be a problem depending on your ultimate perspective, he figured. But Caius wasn’t honestly interested enough to have any real input. He paused a moment before speaking once more, snatching the women’s attention away from whatever brief tangent they’d gone off on. “I’m glad I could be of assistance.”

“Thanks for offering in the first place. I mean, it was probably gonna go down today anyway seeing as we’ve been chippin’ at it for the past few days, but you certainly made it a bunch easier.”

A smile teased at the corners of his lips briefly, but disappeared almost as quickly as it had surfaced. It had not been a personal favor – and the look in Lebreau’s eyes as he parted his lips to reply told him that she knew that already. “You’re welcome,” he replied with a stiff nod before starting away once more, although when Lebreau called his name, he paused and cast a glance over his shoulder.

“Tomorrow’s the day we get stuff sent to us from Cocoon, if you’re interested in lending a hand.”

“I will see what I can offer.”

 

* * *

 

Despite Lebreau’s warning, the path home was relatively quiet. It seemed that all the world had decided to turn in for the night, save for the distant crickets. The path back to the house was relatively simple to feel out even with only the light of the moon and stars to guide him, and most of the ground toward the cliffs being dyed black with shadows. Yeul only stirred in his arms once – when he had to adjust her position so that he could open the front door – before settling back into her slumber. Inside, the house was pitch dark, and it was only by virtue of knowing the layout like the back of his hand by now that he made it to his room across the void without bumping anything on the way; he laid Yeul down on the mat and pulled the blanket over her, making sure she was comfortable before stripping off his armor until only the layer of light clothing underneath remained, snagging the change of clothes folded neatly on top of the box he _still_ used as a table, and slipping out of the room.

He returned only after he’d taken care of his usual evening business – namely, a nice, long shower. His hair was still a little damp when he stepped back into the room – but he couldn’t say he minded. Yeul was thankfully fast asleep, though she’d shifted onto her side and pulled the blanket tighter around her. Caius cast his old clothes into the corner of the room where his armor rested before laying down beside Yeul, just off the side of the mat and forced to use his own arm as a pillow. As late as it was, it was easy to drift off – or, it should have been, but quiet doubts plagued the fringes of his consciousness and he remained awake for a long few moments. He kept his eyes closed and did his best to keep his breathing deep and even – to imitate sleep, at least – and tried to get himself to focus on the soft sound of Yeul’s breathing, on the feeling of her back against his (nice and warm and reminding him how absolutely _tiny_ she was compared to him, as well as continually assuring him that she was _there_ and she was _safe_ …).

This effort, of course, brought limited success.

If anything, it made it worse.

His and Lightning’s departure was mere days away. Caius trusted Noel with Yeul, but the others… No, he knew that they bore no ill will toward Yeul and didn’t seek to use her to their own ends – and for that matter, Yeul knew better than to speak of her visions around them. The seeress had also expressed her desire to stay – though whether it had anything to do with what weighed on her mind, he could not discern. Part of him wanted to take her along whether she wanted to come or not; he was her Guardian, after all, and had protected her for centuries and centuries from all manner of men and monsters, though granted he had never intentionally taken her anywhere of particular _danger_ …

In the end, Yeul’s wishes won out, no matter how much it hurt his heart to let her go. He would just have to deal with the matter of his Focus quickly so that he could claim whatever reward that infernal goddess had planned for him and return to her side as soon as possible. That was the only way to win in this scenario, and…

He let out a soft sigh, letting his eyes flicker open for a moment, although the room was so dark that it made no difference in the end.

Caius turned over and adjusted Yeul’s position so that there was some pillow to share, although he let her keep the entire blanket. A smile graced his lips when she didn’t even stir, and he took a moment to brush her hair away from her face before settling in beside her. He pulled the seeress close until her back was against his chest and simply held her for a while – though it felt like only a few moments, but it _must_ have been longer since he heard the front door open to signal Lightning’s return. He let his eyes slip closed and let one of his hands cover both of hers before finally settling down to sleep.

 

* * *

 

The sleepy town of New Bodhum was wide awake by the time Caius and Yeul stepped into the area that was kind of universally agreed to be the ‘town square’ late Wednesday morning. A small speed boat was parked at the dock and many of the people of the town were gathered around – and Caius figured it must have had something to do with the shipment, but it still struck him as curious. Was the water there truly deep enough to accommodate a boat? Well, apparently so. Even cats pawed around in the crowd, including the one that hung out at the NORA house begging everyone (but especially Serah and Yuj) for fuss, despite the fact that the people’s attention was largely fixed on retrieving small packages from the men in white armor and helmets on the dock and in the boat.

He ushered Yeul in the exact opposite direction of the water’s edge toward the NORA house, despite what resistance she gave him. One hand found its way to her shoulder, although when they reached the steps it quickly fell away. Inside, Maqui and Yuj were busy taking up the entirety of the couch, and they tried to manage a cheerful greeting toward at least Yeul, but it sort of fell flat. Oh well, it was the thought that counted. Caius acknowledged them with a nod, and Yeul smiled at the boys before starting into the kitchen to examine the contents of the fridge, although out of all of the things inside she selected nothing – perhaps because she was not certain she was welcome to it, perhaps because some of it was unidentifiable. Caius, on the other hand, lingered by the archway, watching the crowd for a moment before turning his gaze to Yeul, whom simply nodded at him.

He bowed his head before descending the steps and crossing the beach to join the crowd. He was immediately greeted by Lebreau and Snow, and Lightning was on the boat with the armored men, conversing softly with one of them as they handed off some light packages to the blond man and the dark-haired woman, whom in turn brought them to people gathered in the crowd. Some children shouted in celebration and darted past Caius upon receiving their package, and after a moment’s hesitation and with a bit of encouragement from Snow, Caius stepped to the front of the crowd.

“Slept in?” Lebreau teased, sparing Caius a glance as she weighed a parcel that was wider than her torso, though apparently the weight was insubstantial. Her eyes darted back to the label on it before Caius had a chance to open his mouth.

“I’m sorry,” he replied.

“Don’t worry about it. You and Yeul stayed up pretty damn late, didn’t you? Relatively? Lightning and I joked about it after you left; said you usually retire early.”

Caius’s eyes widened a bit. “Out of habit more than necessity,” he admitted.

Lebreau set down the box on top of another where the wood of the dock met the beach. “Well, in any case, you mind running those over to Maqui for me? He’s too hungover to come down and get his own stuff, or so he claims.”

The Guardian bent to pick up the two boxes – the one on top was considerably heavier than the one on the bottom, despite their relative size, and he hummed at that, taking a moment to take them both into consideration. The labels on them were chock full of the strange symbols that made up Cocoon’s alphabet, naturally, though other than that they were just plain brown boxes. “Of course. Though, frankly, I’m surprised no one drug him out anyway.”

“Believe me, I was tempted.”

He smirked at that. “Should I put a word in for you?”

“Yeah – tell him that he’s lucky I didn’t just chuck his stuff into the ocean. He’s not the only one who was drinkin’ last night, dammit.”

“Will do.”

And with that, he turned away and made his way back across the sand to the NORA house. Yeul lingered on the deck and followed him inside, one tiny hand wrapping around one of the many belts around his waist. He set the boxes on the coffee table and pushed them toward Maqui, whom looked up at him. And Caius nodded and he shot up like a bullet – a bullet that was in very intense pain just then, granted, but a bullet nonetheless. The mechanic proceeded to tear into the boxes in short order, and Yuj covered his head to little avail with one of the tiny pillows that were meant to decorate the couch but instead most of the time decorated the floor (on account of the fact that most of the time the couch was one hundred and ten percent occupied), groaning at the noise. Out of the light, large box, he produced… several packing peanuts, mostly, then another, smaller, clear plastic box that contained three very high-tech and very fragile-looking coils. He presented them to the Guardian and the seeress as if he’d just won a prize and wanted to show _everyone_ , his eyes alight. “Man, do you know how long I’ve waited for more of these?”

“…No.” Caius leaned away a bit.

“Forever, that’s how long. Ever since Cocoon fell, it’s been a headache to get my hands on them.” He ran his hands through his hair in an effort to soothe a very different type of headache.

“What are they?” Yeul asked, reaching out to touch the box before Caius gave her a tap and she lowered her hand. In that same moment, Maqui pulled the box away, letting it rest on his lap.

“Mobius coils; pretty important for anything that functions on AMP tech. You know, stuff the military uses, like manadrives or Gravcon uni—oh, wait, that’s right, nevermind.” Maqui’s face flushed bright red when he recalled that neither Caius nor Yeul were really in the know about Cocoonite technology. “… It’s awesome, bottom line. But mobius coils don’t _gotta_ be used for AMP; Lightning actually wanted me to fit y’all’s gunblades with mobius coils before you left.” He set the clear box down on the table at that before opening the heavier box, revealing far less fragile-looking mechanical parts and other, far less complex supplies that required no real explanation as to their function. “Actually, she just wanted me to give ‘em an overall tune-up, but don’t tell her that I’m plannin’ on giving them something extra.”

Caius looked to Yeul. “Our lips are sealed.”

“You’re lifesavers.” Maqui picked through the contents of the heavier box for a moment before returning everything to its rightful place and setting the boxes under the coffee table before lying back down with a groan. He also muttered something more that neither of the Farseers could quite discern.

The Guardian turned to leave, but then—“By the way, Maqui.”

“Huh?”

“Lebreau told me to tell you that you’re lucky she didn’t just toss that stuff into the ocean.”

“Ooph. Yeah, I sure am—but she doesn’t gotta be a hardass about it,” he complained, earning a soft laugh from Caius before he finally left.

After that, he returned to Lebreau, but there was nothing else that needed to be done; Snow could handle the last big package on his own and it wasn’t long before he and some other person from the crowd were starting off toward the steps leading up to the walkway to the houses over the water. Before she disembarked from the boat, Lightning took a parcel from the armored man, tucking it under her left arm before giving a salute (which was readily returned) before joining the rest of the group.

Lightning’s eyes fell immediately to the black-clad man, and she hesitated a bit before offering a slight smile in greeting. He didn’t return the gesture, instead opting to nod – and his gaze fell to the package she carried but she offered no answers, instead prompting him as the remainder of the crowd dispersed, returning to their homes: “Day after tomorrow, we depart; and tomorrow morning I’m going out pretty early with the others to the town across the way. Need anything?”

“In the way of supplies? Nothing in particular. I just ask that you don’t take anything you’re not willing to carry yourself.”

She frowned at that. “You’ll pull your weight.”

He huffed. “ _I_ don’t _need_ anything. Lightning, I’m perfectly capable of surviving off the land – unlike you, apparently, since you insist upon this silliness.”

“It’s not ‘silliness’ – it’s saving us some damn trouble.”

“ _If you insist._ ”

It was her turn to huff, then. “Well then, c’mon.” She jerked her head toward the NORA house, and started away; Caius followed after a moment, catching up to her with ease even in spite of her head start and brisk pace. Barely halfway across the beach, she sped up until she was jogging, pulling ahead of Caius once more, and with a smirk Caius upped his pace as well.

The Guardian was, eventually, the first to make it to the steps, and Lightning shot a glare at him for it, though the slight curve to her lips took any punch it could have had away from it. At the top of the steps, Yeul took hold of Caius’s arm and followed them the rest of the way inside; Lightning shouted at Yuj and Maqui to move so there was room for at least one other person to sit down; both of them groaned and Lebreau told them from the kitchen to suck it up and take a painkiller or two. Eventually the boys complied, vacating enough space for them to sit down, and Lightning took the chance with all the poise that one might expect from Etro’s chosen (which was to say, she practically just plunked herself down onto the couch – if Caius had attempted a stunt like that he probably would have launched a pillow or two onto the floor); Yeul followed suit and Caius was about to opt for the floor before the look that the seeress gave him forced him to reconsider and sit down next to her.

His eyes followed Maqui as he strayed into the bathroom, apparently to search the medicine cabinet; Yuj took a far more direct approach and simply asked Lebreau where he could find some ibuprofen; she responded in kind by pausing what she was doing to turn and retrieve a small, white pill bottle from the highest shelf in the spice cabinet (!). She handed the bottle to Yuj and it wasn’t long until the blue-haired man downed two pills dry and Maqui emerged from the bathroom apparently unsuccessful in his search, although he quickly perked up when he saw that oh, apparently Yuj had found what he was looking for. Yuj tossed the bottle to Maqui and the shorter boy fumbled for a moment before the pill bottle clattered to the floor, and it was only by virtue of the _fucking impossible to remove lid_ that the pills didn’t go spilling out everywhere. The noise made both of them visibly cringe, and Caius couldn’t help but feel a little bad for them although he was probably the only one in the room that spared any sympathy for them in regards to their current situation (which obviously, they had brought upon themselves). But before long, Maqui had his dose and he, too, was on the road to recovery; both the boys stepped outside onto the deck, shielding their eyes from the light reflecting off of the sand.

Lebreau returned to cooking, whisking a bit more before setting the bowl aside. A few clattering noises later and she set a pan on top of the stove, and—“You’ll _love_ Lebreau’s food.” Yeul tugged at his arm, bouncing up and down a bit. He smiled at her and patted her shoulder.

“I’m sure,” he replied with a slight laugh, patting her shoulder a little more firmly to get Yeul to sit still. It worked for a moment before the seeress smiled at him and, instead, rose to her feet – and paused before wandering over to the kitchen to watch Lebreau work. And thus, it was just him and Lightning in their own little bubble, though she seemed occupied by a small silver device which projected a hologram for her to manipulate in the air and so it was really more like just him. Well, at least – until she flipped pressed a button and the image disappeared and she slipped it into the pocket of her denim shorts and turning her gaze to him.

It was around that moment that, now horribly aware of the fact he may as well been staring her down, he chose to look away. More precisely, his head snapped away so quickly that his beads audibly clacked together, and Lightning let out an amused hum in response before uncrossing and recrossing her legs.

“Maybe you shouldn’t stare if you don’t wanna get caught.”

He swallowed. “It was not intentional.”

“Still – solid advice if I do say so myself.”

Caius hesitated, then nodded. He could feel Lightning’s unwavering gaze burning through him, and he shifted before turning his attention once more to the kitchen. Lebreau had ladled three small circles into the greased pan and was patiently waiting, watching them like a hawk with a spatula in her right hand. Yeul lingered by the entrance, leaning against the door of the fridge a bit and tugging at the hem of her skirt, a smile upon her lips. Her enthusiasm readily rubbed off on him – and Caius had to admit that whatever she had cooking smelled really, stupidly good. “Lightning.”

“Hm?”

“Is Lebreau’s cooking as good as Yeul says?”

“I don’t know what she says, but I guarantee you it’s ten times better,” she answered. “Actually, I’m not sure you could call it just _cooking_ and do it justice. It’s more of an experience.” Pause, then Lightning shouted to the dark-haired woman in question: “Hey, Lebreau, there’s still more of that berry syrup, right?”

The dark-haired woman flipped what was in the pan, humming for a few moments before quickly checking the fridge. “Yeah, plenty!” She took out a bottle filled with a blue-violet, vicious liquid. “You want it instead of plain maple? I can heat it up real quick.”

Lightning gave a nod and Caius was left in the dust but really looking forward to seeing what Lebreau had in store for them. She continued her work in the kitchen before briefly unscrewing the cap from the condiment bottle that housed the syrup and pouring it into four impossibly tiny bowls which she arranged in a microwave before covering them and putting them on for around fifteen seconds as she continued cooking breakfast. There was no way they were hot already and she probably knew that, used it as a bid to buy time to finish with the pancakes. After all the batter was used, there were enough pancakes for everyone whom had made their appearance so far to have three – two if Noel or Serah decided to roll out of bed or one if either Snow or Gadot made an appearance. They were small, barely taking up half the plate, but that probably wouldn’t end up being a problem. Once that was done, the syrup was heated up the rest of the way and she set the tiny bowls on the table; Lightning snagged one.

Lebreau shouted and summoned Maqui and Yuj back into the room before she, with the help of Yeul (which earned a smile from Caius, honestly), set to work serving everyone. The boys first, then Lightning and Caius, and finally they joined the crowd – Lebreau plopped down beside Maqui at the edge of the couch, right across from Caius, and Yeul squeezed herself in between Caius and Lightning once more. Everyone set to work on their plates, and after a moment’s hesitation, Caius did as well – and he just stopped dead, the fork hanging from his lips.

After a moment, Yeul’s soft giggles and the smirk that graced Lightning’s lips made him grimly aware of his expression just then. He finished chewing, then swallowed, and quickly regained his lost composure, and his visage became one of grim neutrality once more. But composure lost or gained, it didn’t matter; the damage to his dignity had already been done.

“Told you it was an experience. Lebreau’s food gives epiphanies,” Lightning taunted before cramming another bite of pancake into her mouth. Some of that berry syrup was pooled around her pancakes, having dripped down the sides after being poured over top. After a moment’s consideration, Caius reached for the little bowl of syrup and poured some over his stack.

“I’d hardly call that an epiphany. But these are excellent pancakes; some of the best I’ve had,” he replied.

“These aren’t _just_ pancakes – they’re a way of life!” Maqui put in, although he didn’t bother to swallow before speaking. Beside him, Lebreau went about eating her breakfast quietly, though a perhaps-slightly-conceited smile graced her lips. Caius had to wonder how much they all fed her ego – though he couldn’t say it was unwarranted. The Guardian gave a noncommittal shrug, if only because he couldn’t really _disagree_ …

 

* * *

 

After breakfast, Lightning handed her gunblade over to Maqui and told him that she’d come by with the Organyx early the next morning. The mechanic flashed her a smile and immediately it was apparent that he was a bit nervous about something; she arched an eyebrow but did not question him. So long as their weapons were good to go when the time came to leave, she had no complaints to make. She helped Lebreau clean up the kitchen and hung out for a little while – just long enough for the sun to begin its final descent – before heading back to the house. Despite the fading daylight, the lingering heat still practically cooked her back – and that was around the moment when she vowed never to wear a halter top again, although her future self would likely disregard her past self’s advice (i.e. she would forget eventually, unfortunately). On the cliffs, the trees and other such foliage offered some protection, but the heat still rose off of her skin in waves.

She huffed and did not break pace, however. Following the same path she had back to the house since that second day – by then it was marked by downtrodden grass that probably gave up on standing up again long ago – it wasn’t long until she reached the doorstep. And perhaps it was an odd time to pause, she realized somewhere at the back of her mind, but before closing those final few feet between her and the front door, she looked it over: it was just as empty and unremarkable on the outside as it was on the inside, and looked practically the same as it had when they’d begun staying there. Made of white-painted slats of wood. One large window facing front, another at the back in the alcove, one in each bedroom. But it had _sort of_ become home – except not really. Home was really kind of down in town, with Serah and Snow and the NORA gang and Noel; this was just a place to return to every night, a place where she could keep watch over Caius. A place that was sort of abandoned, in a way; it showed no signs of disrepair, granted, but whomever had commissioned it had long ago found a better place – a place with her family and likely her friends, a true ‘home’.

Lightning decided only a little bit ago that she wanted to keep the house. That much was certain. It was small – far smaller than her house had been on Cocoon, and not nearly as nifty – but if given the tender love and care that it needed, it could be cuter than a little dream.

But how could she really make it home? It was so far out of the way, up on the cliffs and secluded from town, that perhaps that much effort wasn’t really worth it…

A bug that met its end after buzzing too close to her neck snapped her out of her thoughts and she stepped inside. In short order, she tracked down the Organyx, buried under a pile of neatly-folded, clean clothes. It was heavy as ever, and she slipped it into the sling that came with it initially (although in interests of moderating Caius’s mobility with it, she’d withheld even knowledge of its existence from him) – which considering that it wasn’t made out of the lightest material in the universe, didn’t help matters very much. That was all she came up to the house for, really, and given that Maqui was only human and they were definitely leaving on Friday (well, maybe she’d push it back to Saturday if she really had to…), she really ought to hurry back. But still… She had time, and she’d told Maqui that she’d be by the next morning…

She found herself lingering in the alcove. Things were quiet with Caius down at the NORA house with Yeul – the house almost felt _too_ empty without either of them there. It wasn’t so much because she wasn’t used to living alone (no – while it was certainly true that until a few weeks prior to the thirteen days before The Purge, Serah had lived with Lightning in her house, their daily schedules had often worked out in such a way that prohibited them from getting in a lot of time together, unfortunately) or because she enjoyed either of their presences (okay, Yeul was cute and sweet and all, but Caius was just… Perhaps he would be easier to cope with if he weren’t more or less just a phantom), but rather because perhaps, just perhaps… Even she, former Sergeant – one of the former l’Cie responsible for Cocoon’s fall – Etro’s champion Lightning Farron found the complete and utter _emptiness_ … Unpalatable.

What a joke, right? She almost cracked a smile.

Before, she had been the first to claim that she was more than happy being on her own – and while she wasn’t dependent on others by any stretch of the imagination, her time as a l’Cie, on the run from the military and then traveling around Pulse had shown her the value of having others to lean on. They fought their fate, completed their Focus, and crystallized – then were freed by Etro. Lightning owed Her _everything_ , considering Her initial and continued mercy, and…

This second chance would likely be her _last_ chance. Final redemption – or final condemnation.

(Were she more inclined to blind pride, she would likely have been inclined to, at that very moment, say that the odds were skewed in her favor.)

Her hand came to rest over her brand and after a few moments her eidolith materialized in her hands, floating for a moment before the eerily warm crystal settled in her palm. A dim light settled in its core – nowhere near as intense as the light that found its home in Caius’s eidolith during battle, but enough to make the crystal glow a faint rosy color. It was, just a little bit, comforting to know that even though this was a journey she had to make alone (well, sans the Guardian, but did he really _count_?), she still had a valuable friend at her side.

_‘I’ll make this quick – for your sake, Serah.’_

She’s waited far too long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! School started, and also I made an RP blog on Tumblr and I felt the need to complete chapters 33 and 34 before posting this one. We're just tying up loose ends now and filling in the time to make things consistent (for those keeping track at home, this chapter takes place on a _Wednesday_ ).


	20. The Best of Times

Hope arrived late on Wednesday afternoon. He was welcomed warmly by all present – that was to say, all save Maqui, whom was working diligently in his workshop. Lightning left him to it after bringing him the Organyx – but couldn’t help but note the obscene number of energy drinks lined up waiting to be opened off to the side. Maybe he should have thought harder before doing shots with Yuj. That day, after the fact, was uneventful; they spent some time catching up, although neither Lightning nor Caius were willing to tell him how the two of them had met. It was a _really_ long story – and one that, with any luck, would be of no concern to anyone involved after this was all over. They would, potentially, part ways forever – and Caius would no longer be her problem. He slept on the couch that night, and they started across the bay late the next morning.

The way to the town across the bay was surprisingly peaceful – the water was clear enough that Lightning could practically see all the way to the bottom of she tried, although the way the boat disturbed the water in its motion turned it white and opaque. The roar of the boat’s motor as they jetted across the water was near-deafening, although that didn’t stop them from carrying on conversations. Serah, Snow, Yuj, and Lebreau seemed _very_ engaged in a debate over something-or-other that Lightning didn’t really care about but sounded like involved the discography of some artist that all of them were for some reason really interested in.

(To Lightning, music was music, more or less.)

Her and Hope on the other hand, kept quiet for the most part, exchanging words when words were necessary, casting gazes into the water. The wind toyed pleasantly with their hair, and Lightning had to fix hers several times with how it tended to want to fly into her mouth or some such; Hope had a similar problem keeping it out of his eyes and at one point he muttered something about it being time for a haircut.

Some buildings suspended over the water marked the halfway point; the foundation, of course, was far wider than the peanut-shaped structure itself (almost reminiscent of Lightning’s old house, actually, and her eyes followed it as they sped past the structure and into the distance), allowing for aircraft to be parked just outside. Several boats were tied down to it, too; not plain white like theirs was, but rather gray and various shades of various colors. Guardian Corps insignias were branded on the side of a few of them.

“Never understood why they put a base out on the water,” Lightning admitted; the structure had drawn her curiosity even when she was bound to the beach and not zooming past it on a boat.

“Well, they’ve gotta service both New Bodhum and Cerith, so the halfway point’s about as good as any to set up,” Hope replied. “Surprisingly isn’t that deep here.”

“Really?”

“Nah; just sixty feet.”

“Wow.”

“And if I remember correctly, the water around Bodhum, back on Cocoon, before getting out onto _real_ open water, was around two hundred feet deep; deeper in crevices, shallower toward shores and sandbanks.”

That gave her a moment’s pause – considering how _massive_ Pulse was compared to Cocoon, it was pretty remarkable that the sea in the immediate vicinity of Bodhum was deeper than the bay in its center on Pulse. But then, given that Bodhum was situated on an island, that only really counted if you considered the entire jurisdiction of the Bodhum Security Regiment, rather than the actual boundaries of the town. “Yeah, sounds about right,” Lightning said. “Fair enough. So, been out here before? To Cerith, I mean.”

“Once, but not often. This is the first real break I’ve had; since I officially graduate this year, I figured I should let myself have a little bit of fun. But I had to pass through there to get to the site of my Pulse Studies externship, and me and some friends stayed at the inn a few days going out and a few coming back. It was pretty nice.”

A fleeting smile crept to Lightning’s lips. Hope was really growing up, wasn’t he? It was strange; the last time she’d seen him in person, he’d been fourteen. Now he was seventeen, and she hadn’t even aged a day; in that lost time, he’d shot up a solid foot and now stood over her (which was weird enough as it was), but to think the boy whom she still sort of caught herself thinking of as a kid was _graduating._ “I thought externships were just for college students?”

“They are; I earned a dual-enrollment, though, so some of my classes, like Pulse Studies, I can take at the college level, and the school I go to is actually on Mysidia University’s campus. I’m hoping to get a degree by the time I turn twenty and then work with the Academy full-time.” Hope laughed a bit. “Admittedly, I guess my dad’s status has something to do with my eligibility for the program, but it’s a means to an end, y’know? I just…” He trailed off, meeting Lightning’s gaze. “After everything we did, Light, I’ve gotta repay the people of Cocoon _somehow_.”

Their eyes remained locked for a long few moments, but Lightning couldn’t muster enough will to reply before she tore her eyes away, casting her gaze into the water rushing past once more. “Yeah. I get it.” ' _Better than you could possibly know_.'

 

* * *

 

It was only fifteen minutes more or so before they reached their destination.

The town of Cerith wasn’t actually much bigger than New Bodhum was – although it was certainly busier. Only around three fourths of the buildings were residential, but those that weren’t served as shops and little food stands in some cases. Both civilians and off-duty peacekeepers meandered around the main plaza – which, as in New Bodhum, was on the beach, but the citizens of Cerith saw it fit to lay down some stones to make it official. A palm tree served as the centerpiece for the town, which overall was a bit more practical in design than New Bodhum, but then people from all walks of life settled here, carving their homes into the cliffs (which were far less steep than the ones that backed New Bodhum) rather than deal with construction over water, no matter how calm. The result was a somewhat multilayered community – sort of charming, really. The scents of home filled her nose – someone had put a bit of chicken over the fire, as well as – oh, were those peppers? Regardless, Lightning wasn’t here to eat, and no one else really seemed hungry yet, so may as well shop around. See what the town had to offer.

Lightning patted the red pouch strapped to her leg – part of her Guardian Corps uniform but more or less the closest to a purse she could get – lightly as she and the others set off toward the little shopping center-type area that the people had set up. For better or for worse, they didn’t stay a group for very long – as different items piqued different people’s interests, people peeled away until it was just her. Snow and Serah’s attention had been grabbed by an artist selling beaded necklaces (like Snow needed anything else around his neck…), Lebreau’s fancy taken by a tanned woman selling fresh, Pulse-grown herbs for use in cooking briefly before she found the merchant herself more interesting than her products and they got lost in a conversation about something or other. Yuj flitted around all of the different shops, apparently unable to decide which was the most interesting and more or less just looking without really buying anything; Hope sat before a woman sitting on a quilt laid on the sand and weighted down by what she was selling: books. Lots and lots of books, most of which were yellowed with age.

Lightning herself? She made a beeline for a pair of soldiers who’d set up shop in a small hut that was probably brought down from Cocoon for aesthetics’ sake rather than built from the materials found on Pulse for practical reasons, given the fact that the structure was held up on the inside by thin metal rods.

“’Ey, how can we help ya?” one dark-haired uniformed man greeted, standing from his fold-out chair. Lightning saluted him briefly, and he returned the gesture. “We’ve got a little of everything.”

“I see.” Her eyes briefly roamed the selection – they certainly did have everything, but in very small quantities. Probably just what little surplus there was in the wake of more and more people moving down to Pulse, or parts of old shipments that were never claimed for one reason or another. “I have some pretty specific things in mind.”

“Try us; if we got it, you can buy it,” the other – one who cared a bit less about the state of his uniform in the heat, apparently, and one who held his long, dirty blond hair back in a low ponytail – quipped, patting a cardboard box next to him.

Lightning’s eyes scanned the wares more closely, before pointing to a pair of reasonably-size backpacks made of some sort of thin-looking cloth – nothing retail-quality and certainly nothing like she’d drug to school during her teen years or anything, but they looked durable enough and light enough to be useful. They didn’t match, but that was fine – she wasn’t picky about color and she was sure Caius wasn’t, either (especially given he didn’t even want to bring anything along in the first place). “I want the small one,” she prompted, and the soldier whom greeted her immediately pulled it down from where they were hanging toward the back of the hut on a wire grid. “And a compass. Two canteens. Some firelighter tablets. Keeping up?” Pause. “Water purification tablets. A watertight container, preferably small, four books of matches, and one of those small notepads there.”

“Yeah, havin’ entertainment out there helps, don’t it?”

The men had set to work gathering what she’d specified. At one point, the blond one asked if a thermos was acceptable substitute for one of the canteens and after a moment’s consideration and seeing that the thermos in question was pretty large and could hold a fair amount of liquid, she decided it would do and she’d just have to see if she could find the singular canteen she’d come into possession of during her time in the military. She requested a second one as well – just in case. The items were laid before her on the front table – which otherwise was empty. Lightning took a moment to examine everything, making sure everything was in good working order.

“Whatcha need all this for?” the blond soldier asked.

Lightning quirked an eyebrow. “Just wanna brave the wilderness alone for a few weeks. Get away from it all, see what I can find.”

How easy it was to lie.

“Yeah? Make sure you’re armed, then. Monsters get damn nasty.”

A slight smirk crept to her lips. “Yeah, I know. Thanks for the warning,” she replied before fishing her wallet out of her red pouch and handing them a semi-transparent plastic card which they readily swiped in a device connected to a phone. The device beeped and a flight flashed green to let them know that the transaction had been approved before they handed her card back and they started filling the backpack with the miscellaneous items that she’d bought in lieu of offering her a proper bag. It held it all with so much room to spare that it almost seemed like a shame… Well, it was certainly environmentally friendly…

She readily accepted the bag when it was handed to her, slinging it over her shoulder. She could probably jog a few miles with it. Caius had better not complain… Actually, just by wishing it, she probably just jinxed it. Nevermind. He could gripe all he wanted, honestly, but if he wanted release from his imposed servitude – even if all evidence pointed to their brands not actually advancing and thus no real time limit to complete their task, there was always something at the back of a l’Cie’s mind that dreaded the alternative to completing their Focus. That, and whether he liked it or not (which he certainly didn’t, actually), the goddess had some sway over him.

She thanked the soldiers and stepped away from the hut and took to window-shopping, one hand resting over her brand. It wasn’t a conscious thing, not really – and it wasn’t even visible underneath her white denim vest, or even the black cropped t-shirt underneath for that matter, so there was no need to cover it. But it brought a bit of comfort as she moved through what was, frankly, the only sizable crowd she’d been a part of since arriving back in 3AF. Finding no further items of interest, it wasn’t long until she rejoined the nearest of her companions – well, besides Snow and Serah given that they seemed content to walk and chat alone, so really the second-nearest: Hope. By the time she joined him, he had a sizable stack of books tucked into a plastic grocery bag and just about the giddiest look on his face she’d ever seen.

“Buy some new toys?”

“Huh?” He just about jumped out of his skin. “Oh, well, uh – yeah, I guess you could say that! You get everything you needed, Light?”

“Yep. Just the essentials. Caius is probably going to bitch about it, but he’ll thank me later.”

The silver-haired boy – no, he was a young _man_ now, Lightning reminded herself; she couldn’t keep thinking of him as a child – laughed a bit at that. “He doesn’t seem like the sort to complain much, but I guess you’d know.” He paused for a moment, thoughtfully, and they began walking along the path side by side. The scent of grilled food grew thicker as they approached the section of the marketplace specifically designed to make one’s mouth start watering. “… Hey, Light, can you tell me a little about him? I mean, he’s just—”

“Quiet? Unnerving? A shadow?” Lightning offered. “Yeah, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to fill you in on some details. In short, Caius is an – well, actually, you know how I disappeared after Cocoon fell?” A sort of melancholy crept into her voice, although Hope didn’t seem to notice it. Or, if he did, he didn’t let on that he did. But he nodded nonetheless. “Well, uh, long story short I was sucked into a realm beyond time. Valhalla, actually. I met Caius there – but he’s not from there, he, uh—” Etro, how could she ever explain this? “He’s an immortal warrior from the ancient city of Paddra. You know, those ruins in Yaschas Massif that we visited when we first got to Pulse?”

Hope arched an eyebrow.

“It sounds crazy, but it’s true. Besides being an ancient warrior, though, he’s—” actually, no, Hope didn’t need to know the sort of threat he posed toward, well, just all of existence as they knew it— “a total ass. Pretty quiet, not too confrontational for the most part, but he’ll find a way to get on your nerves if he wants to, without a doubt. We were given the same Focus…” Whoops, too much. “Don’t worry, not Pulse l’Cie. Or Cocoon l’Cie. We’re, uh… Valhalla l’Cie, I guess. Branded by Etro. You know, she was mentioned in some of the stories and records we found while running around Pulse. I don’t think we’re going to become Cie’th, though; our brands haven’t changed since we got ‘em.”

His look of concern left his face, but did not leave his eyes. “Wow. Seems like the story’s a lot more complicated than I thought,” Hope replied, laughing a bit. “I figured you just didn’t wanna talk about it with him around or something. Looks like I was wrong.”

Lightning snorted. “That’s part of the reason, I guess. Ain’t got a lot of good to say about Caius; I’m not sure he takes an issue with that but I don’t need any potential interruptions from him.”

“No? He seems nice enough. Quiet.”

“It’s just because Yeul’s around; trust me. If she weren’t, he’d be the worst bastard you ever dealt with,” she replied with a shrug, recalling their banter in Valhalla. He was always so… Condescending, especially in the way he tended to veil his disdain in compliments – his nickname for her immediately sprung to mind – or mock-worry. Little had changed since they were branded save for the fact he dropped the nickname for whatever reason – likely because they were no longer in battle, or perhaps simply because she no longer wore the armor that made her look the part – and instead resorted to quiet defiance and passive aggressiveness. And his worry for her seemed a bit more genuine, although they both knew it was unwarranted given that Etro had split the Heart of Chaos between them for the time being, just to keep Caius from getting any ideas and to give both Her and Lightning some leverage over him. The Guardian was no less infuriating for it, honestly. She pinched the bridge of her nose and continued, “Ugh. And I have to deal with him alone while we’re away. Shoot me.”

“I believe in you.”

“Thanks, Hope.”

They continued walking in silence, side by side – until they came to a stop in front of one of the small, simple food stands that appeared to be selling food cooked on a charcoal grill – grilled peppers (both from Cocoon and from Pulse, from the looks of things), sausages, hamburgers. The longer they lingered, the more the smell made Lightning’s mouth water, and it wasn’t long after they had decided to loiter at one of the small tables that had been set up (the least precarious looking one, in fact; while all four of them stood upright only on their own merits in the soft sand, all of them were held steady by a base apparently filled with concrete and the table they picked, off to the left side, decidedly wasn’t leaning over as much as the others).  And they sat there, looking out over to the rocks to the south and how the land subsided to sea – and they exchanged few words after that, mostly light-hearted and joking in nature.

Gradually, they were joined by the other members of the group – Lebreau first, and her presence added a bit of energy to the conversation when she brought with her a small box with four or so glass jars containing herbs that could only be found on Gran Pulse in them; Serah and Snow joined them shortly after, with their new possessions concealed completely within old plastic grocery bags for the most part, save for the new necklace hanging around Snow’s neck – a simple metallic chain. Lightning rolled her eyes at him. Serah had apparently bought a new bracelet, too. After a bit longer, Yuj joined them as well and proved to be the only one among them that had enough willpower _not_ to buy anything, which earned only jeers from the others; Lebreau and Serah both tried to goad him into buying them all some food before Snow spoke up and offered to pay.

This, no one had a problem with.

 

* * *

 

They spent their final day together.

The NORA house was absolutely deserted – both for the fact that most of its usual inhabitants were away and the fact that Noel, Caius, and Yeul opted to spend the day up on the cliffs. Caius wasn’t sure of Noel’s opinion of this decision, but without a doubt in the Guardian’s expert opinion, it felt good to spend time up on the cliffs again, surrounded not by walls but by trees, and letting the sky act as their ceiling. It was about as warm as one might expect from a summer day, and the monsters were especially feeling the heat, apparently, with the few that dared stray from their cover beneath brush and trees getting especially irritable. Caius carried Yeul on his shoulders, far out of reach of any monsters, while Noel dispatched the ones that had mind to challenge them easily, usually with naught but a swift slash with his greatsword or a carefully placed stab with his smaller sword. Their path home was thus marked with the corpses of some sort of triffid-like monster (though rather than disguise themselves as flowers low to the ground, they had a preference for disguising themselves as flowering fruit high in the trees) and the empty shells of pulsework soldiers so decrepit that it was a rather simple matter to destroy the exposed circuitry, leaving them as little more than twitching piles of junk.

Caius let Yeul down when they were out of the literal and metaphorical woods, letting her take a seat on a stout stone. Bushes full of ripening summer berries grew behind them, and the water lapped at the rocks below the cliff. Noel lingered beside Yeul while Caius approached the edge and peered down into the dark depths of the water below, ever so briefly – well, no, that wasn’t quite accurate; the water itself wasn’t deep enough, with all its various rock formations to be dark. He could see straight through to the bottom for a few yards out in other places, until of course the land fell away into the abyss, but the water below them _here_ was just _dark_.

He let out a bemused hum before stepping away from the edge of the cliff and joining Noel and Yeul. They chose a spot far enough back that the shade of the trees could be cast on them, protecting them from the added heat of the sun’s rays; Yeul’s hands briefly toyed with her headpiece before she straightened the hem of her shirt, a slight smile gracing her lips. Noel sat in the grass just a bit to the left and Caius filled the space to her right.

The air around them stirred in only brief zephyrs, toying only slightly with their hair; the words between them were few, but between Caius and Yeul they needed few verbal cues and while Noel was far worse at reading Caius than Yeul was, he could get a general sense of his mood. The Guardian fidgeted slightly for a few moments after Yeul turned his hand away, but only until her headpiece gave her trouble; after a moment of lamenting her defeat, she rested one hand on Caius’s shoulder and he got up on his knees and shuffled behind her to fix her hair so that the headpiece held it in place. The translucent veil, however, was a feature she omitted, for some reason or another, and she smiled at Caius in quiet, although her eyes remained a bit downcast.

Her Guardian dared not ask what was wrong, not in front of Noel – but in matters of Yeul it was difficult to hide behind walls and barriers. He couldn’t keep the concern from his features: a slight frown, the slight knitting together of his brow.

Yeul pretended not to notice. Noel probably didn’t pick up on it at all.

Perhaps the best thing about both Yeul and Noel was that they were both pretty easily pleased. They were content to sit and talk – while Caius laid back in the impossibly soft grass and let his eyes slip closed, the winds flowing over him. He was careful not to doze – or, he tried to be; their conversation seemed to skip around several times and at one point when he opened his eyes they’d moved entirely, with Yeul seated to his left, stroking his hair, and Noel to his right on the grass. He stirred at that for a moment, turning his head into Yeul’s touch. She responded by giggling softly and patting his head gently before pulling away.

“Sweet dreams?” Noel asked, smiling a bit.

Caius’s lips parted and he was about to protest – ‘ _I was not sleeping,_ ’ he could have said – but instead held his tongue, merely letting out a huff. “I don’t dream.”

Noel raised his eyebrows but decided not to pursue that topic any further, apparently, because next he commented: “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you doze off before now.”

The Guardian blinked before pulling himself into an upright position. “You were just too busy to notice. I left you and Yanny to your own devices for a reason.” A fleeting smirk crept to his lips then, and he found himself turning his gaze to the horizon when Noel looked away almost guiltily. Caius slept a lot, those days; the remaining people of the village did their best to keep her safe in his stead. The only real danger she’d fallen under had been that time the children had strayed too far and had been attacked by a strigoi. Other than that, he visited when he needed to and simply tried to fade into the background.

He promised to let that Yeul – the last Yeul – live a normal life. A ‘normal’ life wasn’t exactly one that he was a prominent part of, although as the villagers’ numbers waned, he visited her more and more – in an effort to keep her company and to keep her safe and perhaps simply because his instincts as a Guardian were so set-in-stone that he couldn’t deny them for long.

Caius let his hand brush against Yeul’s for a moment, and then she rested her palm in his.

_‘While I’m gone, Noel, please make sure she stays safe.’_ He wished he could force those words to his lips, but it was not to be. The grim realization had dawned on him long ago that he would have to let go – soon – if he was to see this finished. And he knew already that Noel would be a fine Guardian – the only thing he’d yet to do was take the title from Caius, which he had no real intention of doing. He was more than capable of taking care of Yeul. He need not _ask_ him to do so; it was already decided that he would. And it wasn’t like the immortal didn’t trust him to do just that (quite the opposite, in fact), but it was just…

He let out a sigh, bringing his free hand up to push up his headband. “Noel.”

“Hm?” The younger man regarded him with wide blue eyes and raised eyebrows.

“I’m sorry.”

A beat of silence, then Noel’s expression softened a bit, the ghost of a smile even teasing at the corners of his lips. Caius was tempted to add a footnote to that apology – he still very much sought Yeul’s freedom from her curse, but as for everything he’d done to Noel and his friends, well… In reply, Noel offered only silence, but Caius got the feeling that the apology did not go unappreciated. The dark-haired man rose then, slowly pulling himself to his feet and stepping into the sunlight. His hands settled on his hips and for a long few moments he simply looked out to the horizon before he turned to face the Guardian (and Yeul, beside him) once more. “Try not to worry about it too much. That’s behind us now, alright?”

Somehow, though, he was not sure it was fully accepted, but that was fine. He didn’t expect it right away. And before the time came to leave, he figured he could make himself content with that. Yeul leaned against Caius, letting her eyes slip closed briefly, and he pulled her into a loose embrace. “Alright.”

The day wound on, and for the most part they were all simply content to enjoy each other’s quiet company. Monsters seldom bothered them, and for lunch they had some fruit – long and slender, and once the yellow-orange skin was peeled back, pale orange flesh was revealed. The fruit was a lot sweeter than the tangy fruit that Caius had for breakfast in the weeks following his initial arrival, but neither Noel nor Yeul seemed bothered and finished off theirs with little issue. When Caius couldn’t force himself to continue, he let Yeul have the remaining fourth of his portion.

“Forgot you weren’t big on sweet stuff,” Noel commented – definitely teasing. His tone earned a brief frown from Caius – but then the Guardian couldn’t force himself to keep up the façade.

“I like sweets. Just. Not as much as you two seem to. Maybe it’s because you two are children.”

“Hey – I’m eighteen,” Noel huffed. Yeul, on the other hand, had no protests.

“I watched you grow up, Noel.” He smirked then, resting his hands on his knees. “And I’m no less than _eighty times older_ than you.”

That gave his former apprentice some pause. “Point taken.”

And Yeul – Yeul thought the first statement somewhat curious, and she tilted her head to the side, emerald eyes fixed on Caius. He tried to ignore it, but ultimately failed, briefly explaining: “I first met Noel after I’d come to his village for one of your future incarnations – or, rather, to let her mother know I intended to let her remain in the village rather than take her away.” Pause, a slight laugh. “He burst into the room and yelled at me before she cleared up the apparent misunderstanding.”

Yeul’s eyes flashed with something – perhaps a bit of hurt, perhaps something else, but it was gone as soon as it appeared and Caius didn’t seem to catch it.

And Noel laughed a bit – “Yeah. I think it was like – I thought you’d done something to hurt her or something? I don’t even remember, exactly. Surprised I can recall _that_ much.”

“That’s right. _Heh_ , you were too young to understand the concept of happy tears back then.”

“I was… … … Three?”

“You sure were.”

 

* * *

 

All of them converged at sunset, both parties and the absentees coming to the NORA house at the end of the day. Unfortunately, Hope had to leave shortly after they’d gotten back to shore and didn’t get to say good-bye to Yeul or Noel or Caius in person, but Lightning carried the message for him anyway. Lebreau immediately set to work cooking dinner, enlisting the help of the younger Farron sister, and soon the house was bathed in the scent of good food cooking – vegetables, meat seasoned with both new and familiar spices. Lightning’s eyes flitted over the crowd gathered at the couch from where she loitered just off to the side; they managed to goad Yuj into buying some playing cards and the majority of the group present (that was to say: Yuj, Maqui, Noel, and Yeul) was preoccupied playing Aces. Simple game, fun game – but not one Lightning was particularly interested in; Caius was likely only paying attention because Yeul was playing, although he didn’t appear to exactly understand the purpose of the game. Lightning was tempted to approach if only to remind Maqui of the gunblades – but it could wait.

Why ruin the moment, after all? Everyone seemed content for the time being, with their Aces and their cooking; Gadot and Snow chatted out on the deck and whatever they were talking about must have been hilarious because she could hear their snickers all the way from out there. She turned her gaze into the kitchen where Lebreau and Serah worked – dinner tonight would be less simple fare than usual, she could tell; they were using the chicken tenders that needed to be cooked, which were cut into thin strips and seasoned and baked in the oven. It smelled incredible from where she was standing, but what really intrigued her was the sauce – Lebreau had been working on that the longest, starting with canned chicken stock and a roux and adjusting seasoning and letting it reduce. But now she was back on it, adding heavy cream and a bit of lemon juice and adjusting the heat and paying it more mind to make sure that it didn’t scald.

Unfortunately, Lightning knew that Lebreau’s reply if she were to ask what type of sauce it was – or ask for a taste – would be simply a smile and perhaps a light reprimand. Everyone knew better than to ask to taste her stuff before it was done; ruined the surprise, she always said, and some things were simply meant to be enjoyed as a finished product.

After a few moments, she joined the group, sitting down on the floor next to the coffee table across from Caius. Yuj greeted her with a smile while Maqui chose one of the cards from his hand. The mechanic didn’t notice her for a few moments, instead pressing his lips together when he examined the card he’d chosen. Yeul beside him laughed and Caius’s lips quirked in a slight smile. It was a few moments before Yuj broke down into a fit of uncontrollable giggles and, in response, Noel laid his hand down on the table and leaned back in his seat. Certainly, the NORA boys seemed to have trouble taking anything seriously for more than five minutes… Not that it was unwelcome. Not everything had to be all about business, as Lightning realized soon after being plunked back into her home era.

Maqui paused a beat before slamming the card down on the table, revealing an ace of spades. He clenched his teeth, apparently to avoid cursing because honestly he really looked like he wanted to. “You’ve got this deck rigged, Yuj; there’s no way I lost three times in a row fair and square!”

“It’s a new deck! I didn’t even have _time_ to rig it.  You can look through it yourself.”

All of the cards were gathered and flipped through in short order; all fifty-two were perfectly fine and free of any rigging, much to Maqui’s chagrin. “Fine, maybe I just suck. But at least I’ll win against you in checkers every time.”

Yuj huffed. “Yeah, and then Serah’ll kick your ass for me.” Pause, before shouting into the kitchen: “Right?”

“Yeah!”

“See?” Yuj crossed his arms and tilted his chin up a bit, a smile gracing his lips.

“Some of us don’t need Serah to back ‘em up, though, so in the end I still win.” Maqui grinned.

Lightning met Caius’s gaze from across the table and he rolled his eyes, mouthing to her: “Children.”

She nodded. If there was anything they could agree on then it was that Maqui and Yuj were both a bit lacking in the sportsmanship department…

While they bickered, Yeul retrieved the checkers board from where it was stored and set it up on the table. The pieces clacked around when the box impacted the table, and everyone just _stopped dead_. “Settle this,” she said, and Yuj and Maqui looked between them. Yuj shrugged and opened the box, starting to set it up before Maqui backed down.

And with a smirk, Yuj said: “Yeah, that’s what I thought!”

 

* * *

 

“Are you sure you want to do that, Lightning?” She looked up from the board, meeting his eyes as she slowly began to retract her previous move, returning her bishop to its original position. Across from her, Caius smirked a bit, tapping a rhythm on the coffee table for a moment. He let out a soft, self-satisfied hum when Lightning returned to examining the board and looking over all her possible moves – their game of chess was nearing a close and, infuriatingly enough, it seemed to be a game that the Guardian was familiar with. Lightning never counted herself particularly good at it – she wasn’t winning any championships; that was for sure – but it was still absolutely _infuriating_ , at least in the regard that Caius knew exactly how to sow the seeds of doubt about her every move. And she knew he knew she knew – and he enjoyed _every second of it_.

Her hand moved several times between her bishop and her knight – was there really anything to be worried about…? She huffed before moving her bishop where she’d originally intended, capturing one of his rooks and putting his king in check. He responded in kind by capturing the offending piece with his queen (which – along with around half of his pawns, his other rook, one knight, and his king – was one of the pieces he had remaining on the board; Lightning fared just about as well, with her king and queen but no knights or bishops anymore, slightly less than half of her pawns, and both her rooks). She kicked herself for a moment, pressing her lips together and turning her gaze to the ceiling.

 And then their cycle was back at its beginning, and Lightning was about to make her next move and Caius’s taunts were poised and ready on the tip of his tongue when Serah shouted at them to pick up the board. Everyone was perhaps a bit visibly disappointed (even outside of the only two participants in the game proper; Noel and Maqui had taken a keen interest in their game for some reason or another) – but Caius and Lightning complied and soon enough the board was stowed away under the table where it belonged. Yuj rose and helped the women get everyone served, including Snow and Gadot whom made their appearances inside shortly after their food was brought to them. And soon, everyone was sitting in the same general area – not necessarily next to each other or in a circle, really, but close enough. The NORA gang laughed among themselves – Serah and Lightning chatted softly while pushing bits of chicken or squash around on their plate and through the sauce with either their forks or a bit of bread.

The eldest Farron was, of course, more content to listen to Serah and provide commentary when asked; for the most part she just wore an encouraging smile. Her sister spoke of her relationship with Snow, mostly, perfectly aware that the man in question was well within earshot but not pressed enough to care given that she had little but good things to say about him (save for some sly digs at some of _those_ sorts of habits, that even though you love a person despite, annoy the ever-loving shit out of you). And then she said something about not being able to wait until Lightning returned, and that earned a soft, almost sad smile from her. “You don’t have to wait for me, you know.”

“But it won’t be the same unless you’re there,” Serah replied. “I’m sure we can wait just a little longer – so that we can do it properly. Right, Snow?”

And that’s how she managed to pull her fiancé, ever-so-briefly, out of his conversation across the table with Noel. “Huh—yeah! I mean, what’s the point of waiting for you in the first place if we just go ahead and get married while you’re gone anyway? Everyone’s gotta be there.”

So dedicated. “Mm. You could always get the paperwork out of the way though, right?”

Serah hummed, taking a small slice of her chicken into her mouth. And she chewed it over thoughtfully before swallowing and giving a noncommittal shrug. “I _guess._ ”

Lightning could tell her heart wasn’t in it and so she let the suggestion drop, nudging her sister gently in an (apparently-successful) effort to cheer her up before returning to her food. It hopefully wouldn’t take excessively long before this whole ordeal was over with anyway. She snuck a glance to the silent Guardian across from her, whom was just about done with his plate of food and was busy clearing the last traces of sauce and food with bits of bread, apparently determined to make his plate clean before anything else. While everyone sang praises of Lebreau’s cooking, Caius preferred to regard it with a sort of silent appreciation, which… honestly Lightning couldn’t complain about. He wasn’t the most welcome guest and most of the time when he opened his mouth whatever words came out ended up sounding condescending. But under that appreciation, something weighed him down, and normally-squared shoulders sagged just a little, normally cold and hard eyes softened a bit. His confidence from their earlier chess match had apparently disappeared and he smiled now only when Yeul spoke to him; his lips parted to speak softly to only her (although to be fair everyone else was carrying on a conversation of some sort with everyone else, more or less leaving Caius to his own devices). The seeress didn’t seem too much better off and she had paused in her meal entirely until Caius goaded her into finishing the food she’d been given and the two of them, more or less side-by-side, lapsed into silence.

Lightning decided not to bother herself with it too much; whatever issues they had were not her problem and knowing Caius he likely didn’t wish to bother her with them.

 

* * *

 

The meal came, and the meal went – as sad as it was for those absolutely fucking magical combinations of different flavors and textures to disappear as the moment passed, it was one moment closer to the inevitable conclusion of their journey. That was how Caius had taken to looking at it, anyway, in an attempt to cast this whole situation in a more positive light. If it was Yeul he wanted to accompany them then he could simply take her along (although that involved disregarding her personal wishes, which he was… Not crazy about). If he wished, then he might even be able to simply disregard their Focus entirely and continue drifting through the centuries as he had been before this whole mess. But that… No, that would change the future again and cut Yeul’s life even shorter. In Valhalla, he had been prepared to twist time even if it meant doing just that, but here? Things hit far closer to home when there was one of Yeul’s many incarnations sitting right beside him, when he heard her voice and saw her smiles and heard her laughs, when she was there and alive and warm beside him rather than a cold, limp corpse in his arms.

The meal passed and Lebreau and Snow helped clean up; most of the NORA gang went out on the deck to chat and get some fresh air, leaving only Noel, Lightning, Serah, Yeul, and, of course, himself. Maqui also made himself scarce but only to retrieve their gunblades from his workshop, which which he soon returned; the Organyx found its way into Caius’s hands once more and it felt good to have a weapon again and Lightning was already toying with her Blazefire Saber. The barrel looked to be reinforced – a feature not present on Caius’s gunblade – and the blade proper was polished and looked even sharper than it had before, if that were possible. It shifted between all its forms easily, the slight lag between disappeared with the fixing of joints worn from age. On the Organyx (which had a sling, he found – similar to Lightning’s and certainly useful enough to be put to use immediately), everything was reinforced, especially the joints, and Caius knew that somewhere within the inner workings of the weapons rested mobius coils, although how useful they’d be on their journey had yet to be determined. And they thanked the mechanic, really and truly, before taking their leave. Lightning and the rest shared a drawn-out (and almost teary on Serah’s part) good-bye, full of half-hugs and shoulder nudges and Serah gave her something that Caius couldn’t discern the exact identity of – maybe a full-on hug, maybe a sisterly cheek-kiss in farewell. The only ones whom really acknowledged that Caius would be leaving come morning out of the rest of the group were Noel and Serah; he didn’t expect a warm good-bye as they had given the eldest Farron. He didn’t expect a good-bye at all.

So he was a little taken aback when Noel and Serah both approached him. Noel smiled at him and Serah regarded him almost neutrally before she actually became the first one to speak—“So, uh. You’re leaving.”

He cast his gaze away and nodded.

“… You know, I don’t think I can say that it was _nice_ having you and mean it, but… You’re welcome back after this is all over.” She forced a smile at that and crossed her arms – well, no, that wasn’t quite accurate. She hugged her arms close to her body, hands on her elbows, and shrunk back a little as if she loathed to be too close to him.

He didn’t blame her.

Yeul smiled up at her and Caius acknowledged the offer with a nod. “Thank you, Serah.” And then he, too, let a slight smile slip through in an effort to ease Serah’s nerves… although it didn’t work as well as he’d hoped. “I’ll certainly be at least returning—” _naturally_ —“but perhaps I’ll allow Yeul and I’s stay to be extended just a bit longer afterward.” Beside him, Yeul took his hand and squeezed a little.

“Good,” Noel replied. “I’ll make sure to take good care of Yeul while you’re gone.” Then to Yeul, he whispered, although it was that sort of loud whisper that Caius was certain that he, too was meant to hear: “We’ll have lots of fun while he’s gone.”

Caius smirked at the words, biting back a dry chuckle, bowing his head. And Serah continued: “Hey, can I ask you something, Caius?”

“You just did.” A quirk of the Guardian’s lips which was not returned by _anyone_.

“Very funny,” Serah replied, an edge creeping into her voice. “No, but really… What made you so… Agreeable? When you and Lightning got here, from what she told us you were pretty bitter still.”

“I have my reasons. Yeul is one.” He smiled down at the seeress by his side. “Admittedly, my eidolon is another.”

“Bahamut?” It was meant as a clarification but Noel’s tone made it sound more like a question.

“Yes.” His greatest ally – and a part of him. To disregard his word would be unthinkable, even if he is technically aligned with the goddess when considered as an entity separate from the Guardian.

“I see…” Serah murmured, casting her gaze away thoughtfully. Then, satisfied, she smiled a little at him. “You two stay safe out there, alright? I know neither of you really need it – but I’ll be here cheering you on.” Or at the very least, she’d be there cheering Lightning on – and praying for her sister’s safe return.

Caius let his expression soften a little, and he nodded a bit in thanks.

 

* * *

 

“I fail to see how these are necessary.”

For once, all of the empty floor space in the house came in handy. They let themselves be a bit messy as they took itinerary of their supplies for a change – everything from water purification tablets to the matches (in the small watertight box she’d purchased) to small spare water bottles and, for Lightning, a change of undergarments. The recovered metal military-issue canteen and a second she wasn’t aware she had when she’d started searching when she got home that afternoon and the thermoses she’d bought for them. Everything Lightning had bought in Cerith and a little more, to make sure they were completely and totally prepared to brave the wilderness… Although Caius didn’t really see why they needed to be doing any of this when he was coming along as a matter of necessity. _None_ of what they were carrying with them save the gunblades were needed, in his eyes. At all. He set the bright green box on the ground in front of him and Lightning snatched them away, emptying the wrapped bars on the floor before her before setting them aside.

“What, you want to stop _every_ time we’re hungry? They’re nice in a pinch.”

“We will not be in any pinches.”

“Better to be _over_ prepared than under.”

“The Yeuls and I have survived off what Gran Pulse has to offer for _centuries_!” Caius crossed his arms, scowling – but then a smirk crept to his lips as he continued, “Perhaps you’re simply unwilling to leave your modern comforts behind?”

“Don’t push your luck.”

“Ah, that’s it. It’s so different in Valhalla, where you never want for anything – but now that you’ve returned, you can’t let go.”

“Do you get off on being difficult?” the woman across from him snipped as she started lining the bars up in the most space-conserving way she could think of and packing them into the backpack’s front pouch. He just kind of… gave her a look in response, one with so many components – bemusement and disgust, most prominently – that it would have been impossible to pinpoint it exactly. The Guardian cast his gaze to the dark sky on the other side of the window, letting his hands fall into his lap. Lightning just scowled at him.

Silence grew between them, heavy and somewhat unwelcome but neither of them were really willing to break it, as they set to stowing away the rest of their things for their departure in the morning. So, this was it. Who knew when they’d be back. Caius voiced none of his further objections, although he didn’t seem to be happy that they were packing, in previous words, _‘so much’_. It wasn’t long until everything was stowed away save for the thermoses, which Lightning set in the refrigerator. She’d fill them up in the morning before they set off. Her footsteps on the floor were slow, deliberate, and almost unbearably loud, and she cast a glance to Caius in the alcove before she spoke. “Hey.”

He looked up at her, but did not speak.

“Something on your mind?”

“Nothing important.” And he looked away then, before Lightning joined him in the alcove. He shifted to allow her ample space to sit down, drawing one leg up and resting an elbow on his knee. “… Let’s just get this over with.”

“Yeah. North to Oerba. Will we fly there?”

“If you request it.”

She considered this for a moment before shaking her head. “Not if you’re not offering.”

“Then we travel on foot. It won’t take much longer; if I were to fly fast enough to get there in a reasonable amount of time then you’d be flung off.”

Fair enough. All the better for getting Serah’s promised pictures, really. “Try to keep up.”

“It won’t be an issue,” he replied, smiling a bit. “Try not to let all your luggage weigh you down.”

“Oh, for—it’s practically _featherweight_.”

“But not _no_ weight.”

“Is minimalism some sort of Gran Pulse thing?”

“Shhhh.” Lightning hadn’t realized she’d raised her voice until Caius hushed her, quite frankly. “Perhaps it is. Did Lindzei’s fal’Cie never teach Cocoonites to simply live off what they’re provided with?”

“The fal’Cie just gave us whatever we needed or wanted, really. No need to worry about anything.” Of course, in exchange, the fal’Cie treated them as pets. As tools. As sacrifices. Their façade of benevolence was so convincing that no one realized it until it was too late – Lightning included. By the time she realized it, the dominoes leading up to Cocoon resting atop its throne of crystal had already begun falling.

He grunted. “Worse than I thought. The peoples of Gran Pulse had to learn by trial and error – until some fell into the good graces of the fal’Cie.” Anima to Oerba, Titan and the late Hashmal to Haerii. Various working in tandem to lay the foundation for and protect Paddra.

“Yeah, then Cocoon tried to wipe you out.”

“Cocoon was _very_ successful,” Caius replied, scowling and pressing his lips together. “Haerii did not survive the War. Oerba’s survivors were forced to flee after Anima vanished; many clans died out. The nomadic tribes of the steppe had to seek out new lands after much of the eastern side, past Haerii and the Faultwarrens, was scorched by war machines on both sides.”

“And Paddra?”

A moment of silence long enough for Lightning to consider retracting her question – but then Caius worked up the nerve to answer. “Paddra was already gone. It fell a century before the War began. Most of the Farseers survived; a few ended up l’Cie…”

He cast his gaze downward, and she followed suit, chewing at her lower lip. “Sorry. Shouldn’t have asked.”

“Don’t worry. That much, I’m happy to share.”

She arched an eyebrow at that, but didn’t question it, instead responding with a nod and shifting the subject away… From fallen civilizations, from war and bloodshed. Lightning’s seen enough of _that_ with her own eyes; she had no desire to hear of Caius’s experiences. “You know, if you saw Nautilus in its prime, I think you would have had a heart attack.”

“Oh?”

“Given your _obsession_ with minimalism, I mean.” Caius rolled his eyes at the statement. “Nautilus was built around a theme park – it was even more touristy than Bodhum. It existed more or less solely to provide entertainment to the masses.”

Caius’s expression then could only be described as one of confused disgust. “My chest already hurts,” he commented, meeting and holding her gaze. “You never worried of war?”

“The Sanctum always played up the _threat_ of another war with Pulse, but no. Cocoon was united under one government, so there was no one to war _against_.”

“Sounds nice.”

“It was, in a way.” Lightning shrugged. “It’s in the past now, though. There just came a point, I guess, when it was time to say good-bye to the peace we always knew.”

He offered a slight reassuring smile. “It’s not completely lost.” Not yet.

“Most of what there was before is.”

“Then let you and your people treat this as a chance to start over. Gran Pulse has more to offer than you may think.”

She paused, considering this – considering her memories of roaming across the Archylte Steppe, of exploring the Mah’habara Subterra, of climbing Taejin’s Tower, of examining the ruins of Haerii and Paddra… And there were still things yet to be seen by any Cocoonite’s eyes. “Things will never be the same, but—” Pause, then grudgingly: “You’re right. It’s… This world is kind of beautiful when you think about it.”

“It is. Admittedly… Some of my favorite views are on the way to Oerba.”

“You don’t seem like the type to appreciate that sort of thing.”

“I did once; rarely anymore. But once is enough when you remember everything as clearly as I do.” He gave a noncommittal shrug and his smile faded. Silence grew between them – but it wasn’t charged, or awkward – it just _was_ , although it bordered on comfortable before Caius rose. “We ought to rest if we’re to get an early start tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” She followed suit, bracing her back against the wall and simply forcing herself up it with her legs instead of standing properly – not for any particular reason, just because she could. Caius watched her for a moment, his eyes glinting a bit in amusement. “Make sure Yeul’s up bright and early, too, so we can drop her off with Serah and Noel.”

“Of course.” He frowned a little, looking away. He started toward his room and Lightning started toward the light switch near the entryway, before he paused, turned, and spoke once more: “Lightning.”

She cast a glance to him and quirked and eyebrow, one hand on the switch. “Hm?”

“Good night.”

“Night, Caius.”

And the room was bathed in darkness.

 

* * *

 

Caius didn’t fall asleep as easily as he would have liked, but thankfully Yeul was willing to share the blanket. After he’d stripped his armor off so that nothing but the clothing beneath remained, he slipped underneath it beside her, letting her back rest against his. It was a warmth he would miss, and knowing that this would be the last time that they would sleep together like this before their Focus was complete tugged at his heart. She slept soundly beside him, her breathing deep and even; she didn’t even stir when he’d joined her.

He was her Guardian, but in order to protect her – if only at this point to keep the future from changing once more – he had to leave her side, leave her in someone else’s hands. As trustworthy as Noel was, he…

Caius swallowed the lump that started to form in his throat, forced himself to take long, deep breaths, and made an honest effort to quiet his mind. It worked a little, but the most base of his anxieties continued to eat away at the back of his mind. In lieu of attempting to silence even those – an effort that he knew for a fact would be in vain – he focused on the soft sound of Yeul’s breathing. She would wait for him, and he would return to her once this was over. That much was certain.

To her he would always return. She needn’t have even asked those nights ago; over and over without end, across all of her lifetimes, he would _always_ return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go. Buckle your seatbelts. And bonus Hope cameo. When I originally planned this part he was gonna be more important but then I decided nah. Maybe when they get home!


	21. The First Step

The grass under their feet was wet with morning dew that glistened in the pale morning light. The world existed in a precarious still silence – one that neither of them wanted to ruin with their words. The last insects of the deep night mingled with the first ones awake for the morning; flowers slowly unfurled, some of which glowed with faint blue-green light. Their footsteps were measured and silent on the grass, on the stone, on the sand as they entered town – over the stretched wire, into the town square. None of the residents were awake yet, of course – or, if they were, they were enjoying the sunrise from their homes. They made short work of the path from their house before descending to the Winding Way, discarding the shade of trees. The sandy stone from there was just lined with grasses that struggled to survive, struggled to find a foothold in an environment wholly unsuitable for them. But this was Gran Pulse, and nothing on its surface was exactly known for just _giving up_.

Yeul’s breath was soft, slow, and even – even in his arms; Caius made sure that his footing was sure and that he didn’t handle her too roughly so that she didn’t stir. He’d walked this path with her so many times recently – it had almost become second nature. His heart ached when he thought of this time as the _last_ time.

The sun had only started to peek over the water by the time Etro’s l’Cie ascended the steps into the NORA house. Snow could be heard snoring in the master bedroom but Serah was up and about, still in her nightgown, and she acknowledged them with a nod. Noel greeted them with a smile before bringing a mug of coffee to his lips and attempting to blink the sleep from his eyes. Lightning returned the gesture, and Caius – Caius tried to. It wasn’t a very successful effort, and he knew that everyone could tell, and so instead his gaze fell to the seeress in his arms, curled into his chest, fast asleep, and almost unbearably warm. She looked so damn _peaceful_ , a soft smile upon her lips, and… Caius swallowed hard before taking her over to the couch and gently laying her down. It would have been simple – she would remain asleep and they would leave and get this done and… His heart leaped a bit when she stirred, opening her eyes a bit and reaching for his hand.

“You’re leaving?” she asked softly as Caius enclosed one of her hands in one his. He hushed her softly, goading her to close her eyes once more before brushing some stray strands of hair away from her face with his free hand – his fingertips just barely grazed her cheek, and when his touch fell away completely she squeezed his hand as best she could in a silent, though far from decisive, plea to stay. But he knew that she knew he couldn’t do that, not if the integrity of the future were to be preserved. If he faltered, if he changed his mind – she would be forced to see the new future. Her life would be shortened even further. And Caius… Wasn’t sure which part of him would win out – the part that desired to protect Yeul at all costs and free her from her ultimate fate, or the part that couldn’t _stand_ to see her unhappy or alone.

He drew in close and whispered, “I’ll be back soon.” She seemed to relax a bit, loosening her grip on his hand as he pressed his lips ever-so-softly to her forehead. “I promise.” He hesitated, lingering a bit longer before drawing back and away, letting his hand slip away from hers.

“We’ll take good care of her,” Serah said with a smile once he turned away from his seeress. “Promise.”

He forced himself to meet her gaze. “I know.”

Lightning offered him a reassuring smile, crossing her arms over her chest. Her good-byes to Serah already made, the two sisters seemed to be at least… at peace. He wished he could say the same for himself, but he knew that his resolve would shatter in an instant if he turned and allowed Yeul a chance to beg him to stay. “Ready?” she prompted, voice so uncharacteristically gentle that it actually caught Caius off-guard for a moment.

He cast his gaze to the ground. ‘ _No.’_ That was definitely the answer. His lips parted briefly, but knowing that his voice would betray him, he nodded in confirmation instead. He adjusted the way the backpack sat, hanging off his shoulder, before stealing a glance to Noel and following Lightning after she bowed her head in a solemn good-bye before descending the steps. And the Guardian followed suit, squaring his shoulders and setting his jaw. Their footsteps stirred the sand as they departed.

For whatever reason, the path away from the town was far more difficult than the path to it. His feet felt unbearably heavy, and despite all efforts to quiet his mind and focus on the road ahead, his thoughts kept wandering to Yeul behind them, how happy she’d be if he returned and scooped her up in his arms and just… Carried her away, Focus forsaken and whatever future she’d seen that had brought her to tears forgotten. Held her close and pressed soft, soothing kisses to her forehead as a parent might – stroked soft circles on the smooth skin of the back of her hand with his thumb as he told her all of her favorite stories in a hushed voice. He focused his gaze ahead, to some undetermined point beyond the rose-haired warrior whom led the way. She practically marched ahead, and he made sure to follow her example – well, he didn’t march exactly seeing as keeping up with her was a fairly easy feat, but he focused on keeping pace, maintaining a steady distance.

As they reached the horizon just barely beyond the crater, neither of them looked back once.

 

* * *

 

By late morning, New Bodhum had disappeared from even the furthest horizons, and Lightning’s legs were beginning to ache, but she was more than capable of dealing with it and continuing onward. Her brand burned between her breasts – and she brought one hand up to cover it as they hiked. The cover of trees had long been left behind, leaving only rocky, elevated pathways and grassy plains below. Some shrubs jutted out of the gravel – some of them bore fuchsia berries. After looking to Caius for any sign of approval (which eventually came as a nod, once she managed to get his attention), she plucked some of the best-looking, cleanest ones – then bubbled them in a Water spell before she popped them into her mouth and ate them as a snack. They were juicy but a bit tart – although after chewing slowly, they started to show their natural sweetness. Not too bad, really.

They traveled in silence for the most part, which suited her just fine. There wasn’t really a lot to say, was there? Few battles they had to get through (most monsters seemed content to leave them alone, although Lightning’s hand lingered by her gunblade and Caius’s hand rested on the grip of his within the sling at his hip that attached handily to where the belts at his waist already attached. She caught herself casting a glance over her shoulder to make sure Caius was still along for the ride, and he followed a few feet behind her, keeping pace easily with long, smooth, quiet strides even when there were gaps to jump or rocks to climb. The growing heat of the day didn’t seem to bother him for the most part, although given the fact that he dressed in black _leather_ – not exactly the most suitable summer attire – she suspected that that wouldn’t be the case forever. She donned her Guardian Corps uniform for this trip; it proved to be absurdly comfortable to travel in during her time as a Pulse l’Cie.

By the time the sun reached its apex of its path across the sky, they reached the height of their climb; Lightning paused to look out over the vast, plain below; the way the wind stirred the tall grass just about made it look like there was nothing but green water below. Darker green trees poked above the horizon through gaps in the cliffs and faults that lead to rolling hills beyond. Her lips parted and her breath escaped her with a sigh; before she’d even noticed it, Caius had taken a few steps past her and paused, staring her down and patiently waiting for her to continue. In due time, she did, and the vast expanse was left behind in favor of a rocky path reminiscent of a wider, more spacious Vallis Media with walls that didn’t make it feel anywhere near as claustrophobic on the inside. Cave systems opened up at some points – but despite gnawing curiosity, she continued on track.

“In the past, this route was one favored by various nomads making their way to Oerba.”

“Perfect for us, then.”

“If only. The useful tunnels caved in centuries ago after heavy rains made it impossible for them to support themselves. They’re all closed off now – by the earth itself and no doubt the support beams that buckled under the weight of mountains.”

“… Guess nothing’s easy.”

“Unfortunately. But if you’d like, we could delay our journey further and clear the way. It should not be hard for two l’Cie and their eidolons.”

Lightning snorted. “That’d probably take too long – and if it caved in once, it could cave in again.”

“You don’t want to find out what it feels like to be crushed to death?” He actually laughed a bit to punctuate the statement; Lightning didn’t think it was very funny, quite frankly. “Or to suffocate? Or be buried alive?”

“Hardly. You can just tell me all those riveting stories over a camp fire.”

Pause. “I’ve been crushed – thanks to you – but never buried alive and I’ve never suffocated, either.” He cast his gaze downward. “I’m not keen on finding out what they feel like.”

A chill ran down Lightning’s spine. “That killed you?”

“Were you not expecting it to?”

“No, I just – I kept track of your deaths for a while. Checked your pulse and everything.” Admittedly it was easy to jump to conclusions; she hadn’t _seen_ any blood then and after a while he reappeared no worse for the wear and ready to leap into battle once more. So she assumed he’d just been stunned. Apparently not.

“You would draw so close to an immortal enemy?” _Tsk, tsk._ “How reckless.” A smile teased at his lips, and he pushed his headband up a little.

“Call it morbid curiosity—” she cleared a tree’s roots and the tall stack of rocks that they were embedded in in a few bounds, then took a breath before continuing—“I… Wasn’t convinced that the Heart actually brought you _back._ ”

“My body can only take so much. Even if my limits are… Far beyond normal.” Pause, in both speech and step. “Let’s stop talking about this.”

She hummed in response. “Sure.”

They continued on, and eventually trees sprouted at the top of the cliffs, providing them with some much-appreciated shade. They passed by heaps and piles of rock and gnarled roots and each obstacle was passed clearly, but around mid-afternoon they saw fit to rest. They must have traveled around fifteen miles, give or take, and Lightning’s legs thanked her immediately when she took a seat against the back of the cliff in the shade. Caius let the backpack drop; she fished through it until she pulled out a still-ice-cold thermos and popped it open before taking a nice, long sip of water. Some mostly-melted ice cubes bumped against her lips momentarily before she closed the thermos and returned it to the bag.

Caius took a seat beside her after a few moments, and she gave his shoulder a pat. He grunted and looked at her, but she only offered a smirk in response. After a moment, his breath left him in a sigh and he looked away, folding his hands in his lap.

And they just sat like that, quietly. The air around them wasn’t as hot as she’d expect given that it was a clear summer day – but perhaps the elevation and the shade helped to keep them cool. That didn’t stop Caius’s armor from radiating heat – and she was fairly sure that if she touched his ornate chestpiece she would probably burn herself. She almost felt sorry for him, but she supposed that the armor held up to the test of time well enough that anything else would just be a waste of time. He took deep, measured breaths and let his eyes slip closed after a while; while the idea of a nap was appealing to her as well, she took it upon herself to keep him from dozing off with a decidedly less gentle pat on the shoulder.

He grunted and she rose. “Let’s stop here for today,” she said, and he nodded. “I’ll collect kindling and wood – and scout the area for danger. You take a moment to cool off then look for food and water.”

He gave a somewhat stiff nod before pulling pulling a thermos back out of the backpack, searching Lightning’s eyes for permission – _approval? –_ and taking a few small, though drawn out, sips of water. She took this as an agreement and after a moment, she set off farther down the main path.

 

* * *

 

The few monsters she encountered were fairly easily dealt with, and other than them, everything was quiet, calm. The branches of trees stretched above her, apparently intent to compete for sunlight, and before she progressed too far from the area they’d chosen as a stopping point, the foliage blotted out most of the light above and where once the grass had been bright green underfoot, dead foliage gathered. The walls of the cliffs to either side only got steeper, until it was clear that where they had been walking along a mountain path before, they would be headed into a ravine even if they followed one of the side paths. In the distance, she could hear flowing water – good, they didn’t have to search too hard for water and didn’t have to worry too hard about saving it for the moment. She shifted her Blazefire Saber into its gun form and cocked it, pausing and scanning the shadows of the clearing around her. Rocks jutted up sporadically, providing cover to any potentially hostile creatures, and bioluminescent lichens called them home; gnarled roots blocked off a pathway and the maw of the obviously-caved-in tunnel that she and Caius had discussed earlier in the day was clearly visibly off to her right. Large, heavy rocks plugged the entrance enough as it was – but then, soft earth had gotten into the cracks over the centuries and acted as the mortar to the stone’s bricks. There was no way they were going to clear it easily, so it was a damn good thing a detour.

Once she was satisfied that the coast was clear, she returned the weapon to its sling and approached the slowly-rotting remains of a fallen tree. Lightning let her hand trail over it for a moment before she started snapping twigs off of it – just the ones large enough to be used as kindling, until she held a thick bundle of twigs and slightly-fatter sticks in her hand, plucked from what formerly comprised the upper echelons of the tree. She snapped off some fatter sticks as well and slipped the bundle into the red pouch at her thigh before stretching and testing a few branches. A few of the smaller, shorter ones would be simple to snap off, and in short order they were separated from the trunk – but there wasn’t many of them, and Lightning soon had to get creative.

She tried her namesake first, and the reaction when the bolt of electricity struck the tree was instantaneously – the wood splintered and cracked and _exploded_ , sending fragments of wood flying everywhere. She yelped, and kicked herself for having not expected it – but at least the tree was split open. She tried Blizzara next, letting the large ice crystal form in the air above her before she drove it into the crack down the middle of the trunk, splitting it further and almost separating the long tendrils of fragmented wood from the rest of the mass. Satisfied that this would work well enough, she released the spell and the ice melted instantaneously – then she drew in a deep breath, cleared her mind, and conjured a new spike of ice.

It took a bit, but before long she had a nice stack of wood to carry back; she couldn’t carry it all and had to make two trips, unfortunately, but what she had gathered would probably last them the night. She returned to their clearing and shoved the wood aside before takign a moment to catch her breath and gather herself. She was a warrior, yes – but she just wasn’t built for heavy lifting. She would have had Caius gather the wood but surely he was better for more than just lugging heavy things about; he’d lived off of what the wilds of Pulse had to offer him for centuries, and even before she took a shining to the NORA gang for whatever reason, she seemed pretty well put-together. Even fresh out of the Dying World, when she and Caius first met in Valhalla, he seemed pretty well taken care of.

She cast her gaze to the sky – the sun wasn’t anywhere near setting, but it had already disappeared from sight behind the trees. She was already hungry again – but she could wait for the time being. Caius was nowhere to be seen, but she assumed he’d slipped down a branching pathway from their little clearing.

There were only three ways in or out of the area if one didn’t want to climb the cliffs – the way she’d come and that path’s continuation, then the path formed from a partially-blocked fissure that tree roots attacked with glee. The clearing itself was roughly circular and the soil was dark and harbored bright green grass, although a fair bit of the ground was exposed. Rocks gathered toward the bottom of the cliffs – some big, some small, and among the rocks was the backpack, apparently left there by the Guardian even as he struck out in search of food for the evening ahead. And in the center of the clearing, Lightning started pulling up grass and exposing the dirt underneath in an effort to construct a small, makeshift fire pit – just enough for light and warmth during the night, although the warmth they could likely do without if they really wanted to. But they would, at least, need a way to boil water if they were going to collect more before the day was out – and cook, if meat happened to be on the menu.

She hummed a tune as she worked.

 

* * *

 

It was fairly late when Caius returned (the sky’s bright blue had begun to mellow out), but when he did so it was with a canteen full of small fruits – barely bigger than the typical strawberry and encased in what appeared to be a thin, bright orange skin reminiscent of a grapefruit’s rind – and a few damp leaves tucked into the side of the container. But he didn’t linger long before he set off again – after removing the decorations from his headband and setting them aside and telling her to get the fire started. After he was gone, Lightning took a moment to curse him – though not seriously. But where did he get the nerve, ordering her around? She took a moment to put the small string of beads and the feathers from his headband into a somewhat safer place atop the backpack before rummaging through the canteen. She bit into one of the fruits in a fit of curiosity after failing to peel back the deceptively thin skin – and they were so sickly sweet that she was tempted to toss them and scold Caius for even thinking about bringing them back. She told him to get food, not fruit which seemed to provide a mouthful of saccharine in lieu of actual nutrition.

Then she turned her attention to the fire she was supposed to be building and, after digging some fire starter out of the bag, she started putting it together. The kindling found its purpose and caught nicely, but much of the main fuel did not until she dried it out a bit with a brief Fire spell – but by the time she’d gotten the larger chunks of wood dried out, much of the kindling and tinder had turned to ashes and the embers were beginning to fade away, so she had to start over with another small chunk of fire starter and a bit more of the kindling she collected.

But by the time the fire was started properly, Caius returned with three large, black fish with shiny, thick, bony scales that made them resemble reptiles a bit more than fish. Her mouth watered a little at the sight – though they were raw and cleaned somewhat sloppily and skewered through the eye with the long, _long_ stick on which they were carried and would likely be cooked.

At least for tonight, they were going to eat pretty well – between the fish and _well, if Caius wanted the fruit he could very well have it_.

 

* * *

 

He turned over one of the fragrant, green leaves he’d collected earlier in the day several times in his hand. The sun’s light had already mostly faded away and night was warm, so he kept his distance from the fire – he’d done enough sweating for the day. Lightning cast testing gazes over to him a few times as she picked apart her fish, eating the meat off of the bones. He’d already downed the other two and several of the fruit – and he wished he’d listened to Lightning when she turned down his offer and complained that they were way too sweet, but he didn’t and he ended up tossing the rest away. What a shame.

“Thanks for dinner.” Lightning’s voice pierced the silence suddenly when she had picked the last of the meat from her fish and cast what little was left into the fire to turn to ash with the other two cleaned skeletons.

“You’re welcome.” He forced a smile before slipping the leaf in his mouth – the taste wasn’t too pleasant, but it cooled his palate and after a few moments he got used to it. Lightning cast him a questioning look, to which he readily replied, “Mint.”

“Ah.” Pause. “Could I have some?”

“If you’re willing to come get it.”

The blue-eyed woman snorted and stayed precisely where she was for a moment before rising and walking around the fire to join Caius on the other side; he slipped one of the remaining leaves into her hand and she wrinkled her nose at the taste but kept chewing. “ _Blech._ Nothing like actual breath mints.”

An amused hum. “Artificial flavors are often misleading.”

“Mm. I know.” Pause. “You’ve been awfully quiet today.”

He let out a quiet sigh. “There is… a lot on my mind.”

“Yeah? Don’t start getting any ideas.”

“You needn’t worry, Lightning. We just need to keep moving...”

He could feel her eyes on him, scrutinizing every last detail of his visage – and he shifted a bit uncomfortably before donning a mask of grim neutrality. How easy it was to let his guard down after a long day on the road – after he’d grown accustomed to the comforts of the peaceful lives of Cocoonites. But it was too late, he knew; she’d already discerned far more than he would have liked. Caius cast his gaze away, into the fire, as the woman beside him spoke – “You’re hung up on something. Spill it.”

“I’d prefer not to.”

“And I’d prefer not to push it, but I’m not going all the way to Oerba with you all melancholy.” Long road ahead of them, with the direct route blocked off; they’d have to detour out to Taejin’s Tower unless they wanted to blaze a path of their own through the mountains, which would likely take longer than strictly necessary. He’d given Yeul his word that he would return as soon as possible – and that word he intended to keep; in his mind, then, their route was set. And it _would_ be a while… Still, Caius kept his eyes focused on the flickering flames, chewing the mint slowly with his arms crossed over his chest and his back against the cliff. Lightning was silent for a long moment, apparently waiting to see if he would speak, before she pressed him once more: “You’ll feel better if you do, you know.”

A thoughtful pause, and he swallowed his mint. “It’s not about _me_ ,” he mumbled, just barely loud enough for Lightning to hear, and in the corner of his eye he could see her contented smirk, as if she considered those four words to be some sort of _victory_ on her part.

“It never is, is it?”

“… No.” He frowned a bit. And they were both silent for a long few moments – but he knew that Lightning would just press him to go on, so in an effort to save her the trouble, he continued, hesitantly: “I miss her.”

“She’s in good hands.”

“I know. Noel – and the rest – are all more than capable. Still, I… Her various incarnations have been by my side for centuries.” He met her eyes then, briefly, and Lightning let her hand rest on his shoulder with a smile. Rather than a verbal reply, his words were instead met with silent understanding – and after a moment, he brushed Lightning’s hand away, though not without a grateful smile. “Dwelling on it won’t bring her to me, I suppose.”

“At least you realize that much.” Pause. “I’m in the same boat as you, y’know.”

He gave a curt nod. “Your sister.”

“Yes. And Snow – as hardheaded as he is. And the rest of them.” She swallowed and turned her gaze to the sky – clouds obscured some of the stars overhead, though the sky wasn’t near as wide and open as it would have been had they been out in an open field instead. But this… This was still nice. “I’ve missed them all for a long time, actually,” she continued quietly, and perhaps if she hadn’t been within an arm’s length of Caius, he wouldn’t have heard her at all. “It feels like we only got to spend a few moments together before parting ways again.”

He offered a slight smile, though it didn’t seem that she noticed. “You have quite a few people to welcome you home.”

“They’re not opposed to welcoming you back, either. And Yeul’s waiting with them.”

“Depending on how this works out, Yeul and I won’t be able to stay for long. But… It’ll be nice, to be welcomed somewhere, just once, I suppose.” Pause, then a low chuckle. “Look at us. The first night, and we’re already looking forward to returning.”

Lightning laughed softly along with him for a moment. “It’s natural, I guess. We got so used to seeing them every day that now that we’ve left…”

“It feels empty.”

“Yeah.”

The flames flickered before them, turning all that was within it to ash. After several moments of comfortable silence, Caius rose and fed the fire with four more pieces of splintered wood – whatever Lightning had done to it, it had certainly been effective enough… The fire welcomed the gift, licking at the wood readily until it, too, was up in flames. “Do you want to rest?”

“Huh?” She cast her gaze over to him after a moment of surprise – apparently, she’d been either captivated by the night sky or lost in her thoughts. “I’m not actually all that tired. You can sleep if you want.”

He nodded. “Keep feeding the fire then; the light will keep most of the monsters at bay.” And it was a bit difficult to keep watch effectively in the dark when in a space as closed off as this, wasn’t it?

“Night, Caius.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! There's... No real reason why this took so long. Also, [have a fan appreciation post](http://two--pair.tumblr.com/post/134879406014)! I love y'all!


	22. Enjoy the Silence

The sort of peace that fell over Caius while he slept was _eerie_ , wrong. Such a driven, powerful, angry warrior shouldn’t look so content, in Lightning’s opinion – but it sort of suited him in an ironic sort of way. Around the time their stack of wood had officially been a quarter depleted, he rolled onto his back; his breathing remained deep and even, and one hand rested against his stomach while the other remained stretched toward the cliff. His lips were parted a little, and his hair along with the beads and feathers that decorated it were spilled across the ground around his head.

She couldn’t help but smile a little. At least he was comfortable – and at least he didn’t snore. Shadows danced among the trees at the top of the cliffs, and she held her gunblade tight in her hands, finger on the trigger if whatever was up there started to get any ideas. But even by the time the moon rose high in the sky and her eyelids started to feel heavy, nothing broke the silence, nothing broke the peace. Even when the demons were close enough for the firelight to glint gold off of their crimson masks and she took aim between their eyes, they did not engage, instead gracefully melting back into the shadows. She huffed a bit, frowning and glaring up at them – if they intended to make mischief then they should get it over with already. Their standoff had gone on long enough for her tastes and…

You know what, it was Caius’s problem to deal with now. She’d stayed up long enough.

Returning her gunblade to its sling, she knelt beside Caius and patted his cheek softly a few times. He stirred and mumbled something – not even words, just incomprehensible noises – in his sleep but did not wake, and he patted him a few times more, more firmly, though didn’t even earn a response that time.

She sighed.

Moving away from the Guardian, she brought her hand to her chest and concentrated until a large droplet of water began to form floating above her palm. Her other hand joined it and the droplet doubled, tripled, quadrupled in size, until it was well larger than the size of her head – then, she pitched it at Caius. His response was immediate, then – he bolted awake and rolled onto his side momentarily, coughing and disoriented and with beads of water clinging to his hair but failing to really do anything to wet it down (although the feathers that decorated it weren’t so lucky). Lightning smirked then, satisfied as she approached him, and he scrambled back once his gaze fell on her, obviously not processing very much of _anything_ just yet. He blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes before his breath left him and Lightning knew his brain finally turned on.

“Must you wake me by attempting to _drown_ me!?”

“I could have kicked you. Or dragged you around for a bit, but I’d rather save my strength by _not_ lugging around a ton of bricks until he wakes up. Also, that wasn’t _enough_ water to drown you, Caius.”

He ran a hand over his hair, pausing at the feathers before he pulled them out by whatever held them in place – beads, it turned out. Why was she not surprised… “Kick me next time, if you must… It would still be better,” he grumbled, removing his headband as well and wringing out what little moisture it held before folding it up several times and setting it near the fire to dry.

“Alright, I’ll kick you next time.” She shrugged, walking around to the other side of the fire before laying down. “There are some demons up top. They haven’t engaged yet, and they probably won’t, but just thought you should know. I’m going to sleep.”

He pressed his lips together and reached for the Organyx. “Alright.”

Caius swore that she was out the instant she closed her eyes.

He fed the fire with more wood in an effort to keep it alive – something Lightning had apparently neglected to take care of in his stead before she decided it was time for him to keep watch. The remainder of the flames took to the wood slowly, tentatively, but before long one piece of the wood had gone up and he slowly added three more, bringing the crackling flames back from the brink of death. The night was quiet – almost too quiet, really, but knowing that there were monsters just out of sight set him on high alert. The Organyx rested in his lap, its bronzed blade glinting in the firelight and he listened for the demons’ telltale cries of battle: twisted birdsong, low trills and caws. But it didn’t come, and he drew out the crystal eye and held it to the flames of the fire until it caught and refracted the light _just right_ , so that the warmth of its color could properly be appreciated and Caius’s face was cast in pale red-violet.

A contented hum built at the back of his throat, and he returned his eidolith to his brand before letting one hand rest on the grip of his gunblade – and he let the fingertips of his other brush across the smooth metal of the blade, teasing at the sharp edge.

Time barely seemed to pass; funny how that went. The day had passed so quickly, it was practically the blink of an eye – but one second felt like five minutes now. The moon seemed content to hang high in the sky rather than continue to follow its path and eventually usher in the beginnings of dawn. The demons continually lurked in the shadows, perpetually waiting for the right time to strike. Lightning slept forever – he watched over her forever. The fire never faded or died. This, like he, had become eternal, frozen in time… And he likely wouldn’t be complaining if it _had_ , but the fact that it was merely an illusion just made it frustrating and worthy of complaint. He would die – he would kill – for it to be over. He longed for progress, longed for Yeul – and was it perhaps a bit ironic that in his efforts to save her he sought to dam the flow of time, but now all he wished was for it to progress so that he and Lightning could move forward and he could return to her side? In either case, it earned no humor from him.

The passage of time _loved_ to taunt him – he was sure that was the reason it seemed so content to stay still when he wished for its passage, and flew by far too quickly when he sought to freeze it.

He lifted his weapon and adjusted the angle at which it caught the light until the reflected light created a spot on the opposite cliff face. Then he adjusted the position and the reflection moved with it, a dancing spot of light on the stone and gnarled roots. One false move and it ended up catching the light of one of the demons’ golden headdresses and the tripronged objects fastened to its back – a yakshini, from the looks of things. It was a wonder they hadn’t attacked yet – while far from the most aggressive demons on Gran Pulse, it was one known for mischief and attacks on travelers passing through its pack’s territory. He clicked his tongue a few times, rising – and its gaze fixed on his gunblade. He brandished it and it trilled softly before disappearing out of sight, apparently and disappointingly disinterested in their little travel party of two.

What a shame; yakshini and the often-accompanying yaksha were pretty useful once killed. The meat was edible, though there was the question of why would you eat it in the first place, given how tough and stringy it tended to be (although like the meat of many demons, it _did_ have properties that made it a much sought-after delicacy of Paddra’s many l’Cie way back when); the bones were excellent for a multitude of things including weapon crafting and carving. The robes (and masks and headdresses for that matter), once the fastenings that dug into the demons’ skin were destroyed or undone, were all pretty comfortable. And so on and so forth – Caius was fairly sure that there wasn’t a single use in the world for the remains of demons such as yakshini and yaksha (or their cousins, skata’ne or stikini) that he wasn’t aware of.

He shifted the blade again until he caught sight of a yaksha; it opened his mouth and let out a hiss – and with a smirk he raised it and the light that glinted off of it struck the beast in the eyes. It let out an angry cry before approaching the edge of the cliff, although it seemed hesitant in leaping down and engaging him, even after he provoked it once more. Grumbling, he let the Organyx rest in his lap before drawing one hand in to his chest before flinging a ball of fire at it – but that didn’t do much besides scare it off.

He’d have his way yet.

 

* * *

 

The sun was already high in the sky by the time she woke, and the sky a bright, clear blue with pale clouds streaked across it in intervals. The fire had long since been allowed to die, the last embers toward the center flickering and fading, but unable to take to anything that remained in the fire pit she’d constructed. Lightning blinked the sleep from her eyes several times – then stretched and yawned. Her back hurt a bit, and only after rolling her shoulders back a few times did the ache that permeated them finally leave, but overall she was no worse for the wear.

“Good morning, Lightning.” Caius didn’t look up from his work rending apart the body of a yakshini in an effort to separate its robe from its shoulders. The three shuriken-like objects had already been removed from its back and had been set aside; the clasps and buckles that dug into the leathery skin of the demon were, one by one, being pulled out. Lightning wasn’t sure she wanted to watch when the Guardian gave one hard tug and, with a horrible ripping sound, half of its robe came away, leaving the corpse’s left shoulder and stubby, featherless wings exposed.

She winced a little. “Mornin’…” Caius could surely forgive her for not putting her heart into it. “Demons decided to get aggressive last night?”

“No. _I_ went after _them_. The yaksha were smart enough to run.” He shrugged before starting to work on wresting the other half of the robe off. Shame that the yaksha fled, really; their robes were stitched together in one piece as opposed to the halves being separate. But the yakshini had to keep the blades on their backs _somehow_. Getting the right half off of the corpse, though, was much easier than the left – and it came away after a few moments, leaving the lifeless demon’s torso bare. Then, he rose, casting the corpse aside. “I’ll fetch us some water and mint, then we can move on.”

“What about—” she yawned—“’scuse me—what about breakfast?”

“Just eat one of those snacks you _insisted_ upon bringing with you.” He shook out the robes before laying them down.

“Mmm. Take some of the water purification tablets with you.”

He took a moment to find them before taking two and plunking one into their empty water bottles before he rose and departed to complete the tasks he’d given himself. The clearing, then, was quiet, and after a moment of letting herself wake up, Lightning rose and walked over to the yakshini corpse before prodding it with her foot. How long had it been dead – hours? It didn’t look any different than it would have while alive, and its leathery skin didn’t give at all even when she pressed down on its abdomen with all her weight. Its mouth hung open and its neck had a large gash in it that leaked no blood – and didn’t appear to ever have leaked any blood, for that matter. The wounds left in the creature’s back after Caius ripped its robes off didn’t bleed, either. She hummed a bit before deciding to leave it alone, instead turning her attention to the robe that Caius had apparently been working on salvaging from the corpse for quite a while – both halves were thin, but had a strange, almost supernatural silky softness to them on one side while the other side (the side with the decorative markings and vibrant colors) felt almost like leather.

Well, she supposed that they would be useful. She folded one of the halves and slipped it into the bag, leaving the other for Caius to deal with as he pleased when he returned. Which didn’t take long, surprisingly, and after everything (including the other half of the robe) was packed away, they stamped out the straggling embers and started on their way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As my schedule continues to slip... Oops! Haha. It's patch day...


	23. Plains of Eternity

The second day came and went and by its end they had made it out of the woods and out of the mountains; by the third morning they had made it out to some open plains which Caius helpfully informed Lightning would subside into badlands as they approached the roost of the late fal’Cie Dahaka.  But for the moment they were perched safely at the edge of the plains, where water fell from a high cliff into a pool lined with rocks and gravel before flowing toward Cocoon on its crystal throne. The previous evening, they took it upon themselves to bathe there, watching as the dirt and grime from their travels thus far peeled off of them – and Lightning wished she’d brought some shampoo at the time because it made her feel gross. They had bathed back-to-back, careful to keep their eyes fixed _away_ from each other, and she knew deep down how… awkward it was, if awkward was the word. She finished up first and dried off with her half of the yakshini’s robe; Caius took a bit longer and she felt a pang of shame at how she couldn’t help but sneak a curious glance at his tall, muscular frame and yes – power oozed from each and every line of his body, even without that dark armor of his to make him even more intimidating than he already naturally was. His violet hair stuck to the back of his shoulders in a thick sheet, accenting through its utter absence the gradient that his hair seemed to have when it was dry – lighter, almost lavender at the ends, and _deep_ violet at his roots. She supposed the layers must have something to do with it.

When he started to turn, every part of his body apparently satisfactorily scrubbed clean, she whipped her gaze away so fast she swore it could have made an audible sound and continued getting dressed. He only put on his underclothes after he, too, was dry (or, well, his body was dry; by the time he was clothed once more his hair was still damp even after he’d wrung the moisture out and he tied it back with the long strip of fabric he usually kept tied around his forehead), apparently content to leave the task of putting his armor back on for the morning. After they bathed they went about getting food – more river fish – and cooking it over the fire; they were both apparently content to leave _this_ evening to the silence that grew between them, either for exhaustion or simply having nothing to say. Lightning had taken advantage of the chance, speculating on the future when this was done with and she would be free from Etro’s brand – of the stories she’d tell Serah and _exactly_ what kind of congratulations she’d give to her and Snow at their wedding. She had, self-indulgently and a bit shamefully, fantasized about _having her life back_.

Finally, after so long.

It took them a while to get going in the morning, though, with Caius taking the time to slip back into his armor one piece at a time, and the process fascinated her for a bit before she grew antsy. She examined the glyphs etched onto either side of the decorative piece that, after she was done examining, he fastened with little difficulty just below the small of his back – she couldn’t read what they said but the message was the same on both sides. As they packed everything up, she inquired about it and he stiffened before simply shaking his head, and Lightning knew better than to press the matter further. She let it go, and it seemed like it was easily forgotten that it had ever come up at all. Once they were done packing up, they were back on their way – down the hill they’d camped the night on and on to the plains beyond. Three days in and she felt like they’d made pretty significant progress – even in light of the hostile terrain, what with rocky crags lined with dense foliage. It honestly felt outright _liberating_ to be out on the open plains, and with nothing but gently rolling hills and grass for as far as the eye could see, she soon found herself falling out of her militaristic walk and into a steady jog, enjoying the way the wind toyed with her hair all the while.

Nothing like a morning run to get the blood pumping, really; her heart pounded in her chest and her lungs ached a little bit but not in the way that was painful, so she kept going. Caius kept pace easily enough for a while until he eventually decided to overtake her – and his legs could take him farther faster than hers could, given his stamina and his long strides. It was her turn to speed up to keep up with _him_ , and he noted the gesture with a smirk. Where she was in a much brisker jog – the sort that she employed when she sought exercise rather than simply making haste to a destination, he was pretty relaxed about the whole thing. Her breath came in wonderful pants and after a while he shouted over to her from where he jogged a yard or two to her left – “Keeping up?”

Almost breathlessly, she replied, “This is nothing!” If it were lie, it would only have been on technical terms; it took some effort, sure, but it felt _good_. To run in open spaces after so long confined to the cramped, dead cityscape of Valhalla – after so long catching up with everyone and growing accustomed to the relatively stagnant life that that entailed (at least for as long as they’d been back in this era, until their ultimate departure) – after days navigating a maze of crags and trees and tangled roots. “I could probably – probably outpace you if I wanted!”

“If that’s a challenge, Lightning, it is an ill-conceived one.” He couldn’t keep the amusement out of his voice – and it was strange, hearing him actually almost… _playful_.

“Yeah? C’mon, let’s go – right now!” And with that she broke into a run, living up to her name and leaving Caius in the dust behind her for a few moments while he processed that it really was a challenge, and a serious one at that. She grinned, sucking in air through her teeth and releasing her breath through her nose, her arms pumping at her sides and her feet propelling her ever farther, hitting the soft grass and hard soil beneath her feet with audible thuds. Her heart pounded in her chest, her ears, her head; her lungs strained. It wasn’t long until she heard Caius’s footsteps hard on the ground beside her – and before she knew it, he’d passed her, having broken into a full-tilt sprint, teeth bared in a grin and violet locks and white-and-red feathers whipping behind him all the while. His beads seemed to be displaced from their usual place across his shoulders thanks to the motion, even – but the tails of his headband remained in position except where they were _allowed_ to move, held _just so_ by the armor at his collar.

She increased her pace further, until she just barely didn’t catch him and her lungs and heart started to protest, but with his eyes trained ahead, she drew the crystal rose out of her chest and drew her gunblade from her sling before pausing and pitching it forward, taking aim, and shattering it with a round that forced Caius to falter in his step as the rose-tinged summoning glyphs of her eidolon appeared mid-air and her trusty steed emerged from the ether. She paused and hopped on and Odin surpassed him easily – and he looked absolutely incredulous for a few long moments as he gazed at the sight beside him. Lightning smirked and hummed contentedly at him from her perch before they started to pull ahead of the Guardian.

“Foul!” he called after them, and she laughed in response. And after a moment, he called after them once more, panting, “Fine, if that’s how you want to be—!”

She didn’t even look back, but she knew he’d drawn his eidolith out of his neck and flung it into the heavens because a black cloud of smoke appeared in the sky above them and a black dragon materialized, and dipped behind them to pick up his master. When she saw Caius next, it was on the dragon’s back several yards away – enough to allow for Bahamut’s wingspan. The Guardian was bold enough not to sit but merely to crouch (not even a full kneel!) – and seeing both Caius and Bahamut together really put into perspective how absolutely _massive_ the eidolon was. Fang’s Bahamut had been maybe two thirds the size of Caius’s, and even given that Caius was more or less a giant, Bahamut was still _several_ times bigger than he was, whereas Odin was only about twice times Lightning’s height in his humanoid form.

This race was no longer really about the humans on the backs of their eidolons, though – not anymore, and after several moments Caius grew bold enough to stand upright on his eidolon’s back, briefly raising his hands to the heavens, apparently seeing fit to let the exhilaration flow freely through his veins. She wasn’t sure she’d ever seen him so passionate about something outside of battle, but it didn’t make her afraid, or uncomfortable, and he dropped back down into a crouch before Bahamut beneath him gave a mighty flap of his wings and ascended several feet into the air.

And they raced on and on toward eternity.

  


* * *

  


They took a break around high noon, their eidolons dismissed and their packs cast aside as they sprawled out on the grass, pants subsiding into deep, slow breaths. Lightning’s left hand was close enough to his right that they could touch fingertips if they really wanted to, but neither of them showed much interest in doing that, and for a long few moments he just laid there, eyes closed and feeling and _smelling_ the grass beneath him and feeling the gentle breeze move over what little exposed skin he had. He stirred when she spoke – “Caius?”

He acknowledged her with a hum, opening his eyes and casting his gaze toward her. Her blue eyes were bright, clear – just like the sky above them, just like the sky that for a while he and Bahamut had soared high enough to touch while Lightning and Odin remained bound to the lands of Gran Pulse below. “Yes, Lightning?” When he spoke her name, it was different than before – and not without good reason, perhaps. He felt lighter – or perhaps just a little delirious from pushing his lungs to the point where they protested. He prided himself on his stamina, sure, but running great distances wasn’t something he made a habit of before Valhalla. If only because before, very few Yeuls were ever in a great hurry to get somewhere (which was likely part of the reason most of them did not like to see him become Chaos Bahamut, the other part being that they all held knowledge of the pain it caused him to do so, even though he didn’t necessarily _mind_ …), so usually, walking would suffice.

“I hope you know that I won.”

“I beg to differ.”

“Differ all you want, won’t change a thing. But – we should do that again. Not now, but sometime. Maybe on our way back.”

“Absolutely.”

After a few more moments, they both pulled themselves into upright positions – and they heeded the low rumbles of warning that their stomachs gave them and Lightning pulled out one of her granola bars and split it between the two of them. Caius was initially hesitant to take it but one bite and he decided that the processed, packaged food that Cocoonites (well, _Lightning_ ) seemed to favor did something right, at least. It wasn’t overpoweringly sweet and really it tasted more like its apparent components than he expected at first – good for a snack, certainly. After that, they were up and on their way, their respective eidolons summoned once more to make crossing the rest of the plains in a timely manner easier. Around sundown, they reached the badlands in all of its glory and some rock formations started cropping up out of the earth as the grass thinned out until only the hardiest of varieties covered the earth, with other plants popping out of the ground occasionally in small tufts. Withered wildflowers and dry grasses dominated; monsters stalked in the shadows and animals roamed free.

 Lightning suggested stopping once but he shook his head and willed them to press on. Had Taejin’s Tower still been standing, he was certain that the very tip of its impossibly tall spire would have been _just_ visible on the horizon from where he was, several yards above Lightning. The rose-haired woman followed in the long shadow cast by Bahamut as the sun touched the horizon and he lead them toward some cliffs; had he been within earshot he was certain that he would have heard Lightning groan, or complain – but this was only shelter for the night.

As they approached, Bahamut dipped low and vanished into the ether. Caius hit the ground running, falling in stride alongside Lightning and Odin slowed to keep pace with him rather than pull ahead. He cast his gaze toward Lightning and it was clear that it was beginning to dawn on her exactly why he directed them toward these cliffs.

Rows upon rows of small dwellings were carved into the faces of the cliffs to either side, with the ceilings of the dwellings being the same as the paths leading to the ones on the next level up. It was deathly quiet and there were no signs of life; the wooden doors, however, had long since rotted away, leaving only rusted metal frames in some of the doorways. The window frames were empty as well, either for never having glass panes inside of them in the first place or for the glass having shattered at some point in time. The dust of the badlands outside subsided into hard stone, set into the ground. The sun setting down the corridor they followed cast the entire scene in a fiery light, turning the dust and rock a pale orange and obscuring completely the insides of the dwellings in shadow.

Surely, if you were to look up ‘ _ghost town_ ’ in the dictionary, then there would be a picture of this forsaken place would be pictured next to it.

“Pick one,” he prompted her as she came to a halt beside him and dismissed Odin, dropping down to the ground. She let her eyes roam the scene for a moment, lips parted just a bit – and for a moment he wondered if she’d even registered that he’d spoken.

But, eventually, they found somewhere to set up camp: a small stone room carved into the cliff on the third level, one from the top. Just outside the doorway, they built a fire with what little they could find – dried grass and leaves mostly, and in the absence of proper fuel they kept the fire going with their magic. Caius left her for a bit to hunt while she tended to the fire, recasting the spell when the flames started to die. She occupied herself in the time between the need to cast by rummaging through the dwelling at her back formally setting up camp, laying out the yakshini robes that by now they found were pretty comfortable to sleep on just inside the dwelling. Eventually, Caius returned with the fruits of his labors: proper firewood and two small, lean rabbits that proved to be hell to clean, even when she lent him her survival knife to do so. Not much meat on those bones, they found, and it was a little difficult to avoid taking the meat off along with the skin and fur.

But she had _previously_ found a stainless steel pot locked away inside the dwelling, which was caked in dust but showed no sign of any real corrosion. She cast a water spell to fill it up, dumped it out a ways away to get rid of the dust, repeated once, then refilled it one last time and they set it at the fire’s edge and let the water boil off. By the time the meat was stripped of skin and fur and cut into satisfactory pieces, the pot was dry and ready for the rabbit. Perhaps if they cared more about appearances they would have left it on the bone – and seared the meat first – but on the road and hungry they could care less as long as it was cooked and so shredded the meat and put it, with about an eighth of the remaining contents of Lightning’s thermos (just enough to half-submerge the meat), into the pot. After washing and treating a suitably-sized lid with heat in a similar manner to the treatment they gave the pot, they covered it.

“Gotta admit that I’ve never had braised _rabbit_ before.”

“There is a first time for everything. It should be ready in an hour.”

“I’ll give it an hour and ten minutes then,” Lightning replied, summoning an orb of water in her hands and rolling it around for a bit until the blood from the rabbit came off (as did Caius), then she dried her hands on her vest and rose to her feet. “I’ll look for some plates.”

“The people who called this place home were known for fine ceramics.”

“Good.” Pause. “What happened to them?”

“War and fal’Cie happened, Lightning.”

She let her breath escape her in a sigh – _of course_ fal’Cie had to be involved – before slipping into the dwelling. She hadn’t paid much mind to search for plates her first time through and much to her disappointment they weren’t even located where she’d expect for them to be anyway; instead of in a cabinet above the countertops, she found them stowed away below what used to be a sink. The plates seemed to be in relatively good condition – even considering the massive amount of time that they’d gone untended-to for. The finish was pristine save for a few scratches from where they’d been used by their late owners, although it was nothing fancy to begin with; just clear varnish that showed off its natural terracotta color. She picked out two – and briefly considered picking out some silverware but all that was available had tarnished long ago – and set them on a stone block hat looked like I may have once been a mailbox outside of the doorway.

Caius’s gaze followed her quietly for a moment before he turned his eyes back to the fire. She took a seat a respectful distance away from him and he handed her survival knife back to her – blade clean and shiny as if it had never been used at all. “How much farther to the tower?” she asked, not looking at him – and he hummed thoughtfully for a moment in response.

“A few days out, still, even if we use our eidolons.” Pause. “Things will get easier from there.”

“Yeah. Oerba’s practically right up next to it, and from the top we won’t even have to walk.”

“Precisely.” The ghost of a smirk crept to his lips. “Centuries ago, during the War, the tower falling was seen as the end of times. Ironic how its fallen spire has become a blessing.”

Lightning raised her eyebrows at that. She figured that whatever could snap a structure like that had to be borderline cataclysmic, but the _end of times_? The Guardian seemed to sense her surprise though, and continued: “The Tower was ordered to be constructed by the fal’Cie Taejin in exchange for protecting the tribes that settled in the valleys below from rival fal’Cie that sought the same land for their tasks. The Farseers were _not_ one of these tribes… However by the time I was born, Taejin’s Tower had become a symbol of the divine might of the fal’Cie all over the mainland of Gran Pulse and people had become more willing to turn to them for protection and guidance – as in Oerba with Anima, or Paddra with Belias and Shemhazai. And when it fell at the end of the War of Transgression, people figured that it signaled an end of times and – well, the result… wasn’t pleasant.”

She paused, lips parted just a bit with words hanging off of them for a few moments before she finally managed to force herself to speak, prompting him to continue with, “War and fal’Cie?”

“War and fal’Cie. The fal’Cie of Gran Pulse were just as much a hand in the extermination of many of our tribes and cultures as the combatants from Cocoon were. The people turned on the fal’Cie – some of the fal’Cie even fought amongst _themselves_ , for resources or in an attempt to prune diseased branches off the family tree… If you will. Anima was spirited away by your fal’Cie; Dahaka descended on the people in the valleys once they had killed their fal’Cie, whom had done little in the way of contributing to the War. Paddra had already fallen a few decades before the War’s beginning, but – Belias fell dormant in the aftermath of… our civil war. And it’s _said_ that only the god Pulse knows what became of Shemhazai.” His jaw tightened; he sucked in air through clenched teeth. Violet eyes remained focused on the fire for a few moments before turning to Lightning. “Perhaps it was a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

“Like all the others, right?”

He fell silent, looking away again – and suddenly those clear violet eyes of his seemed far away. Unfocused, or focused on something far out of sight. And after a few moments, Caius blinked, gave a stiff nod, and rose to his feet – but not before he forced himself to unclench the fists he didn’t seem to consciously realize that his hands had balled into over the course of his little history lesson. “I’m going for a walk.”

In a rare twist of fate – his tone made it painfully transparent that he was merely searching for a way out of their previous conversation. And at that realization, Lightning couldn’t help but feel a little guilty; perhaps she overstepped some unspoken boundary of his. She nodded, casting her gaze briefly away, and, as he started away, rose with him – but then figured that he’d prefer to be alone (even if she didn’t particularly like the idea of letting him go off on his own) and sat back down. Besides, someone had to tend to the fire, and the camp; if any monsters thought it a good idea to sniff around then if she wasn’t there she wouldn’t be able to stop them from taking whatever they had and making off with it. And she’d rather like to keep what few possessions she and Caius brought along – along with their dinner. So she sat back down, drawing her knees in to her chest.

  


* * *

  


Caius stayed gone for about half an hour. When he returned, he checked the rabbit before adding some rosemary (several leaves of mint also found their way into his emptied (the contents having been consumed over the course of the day and then finished when he returned from his little walk) canteen for later) and tending to the fire. He regarded her with calm silence, and she did the same – even when it came time to eat their meal. They both knew better than to complain, though the meat was still stringy even after an hour of braising. It was edible, at least, and it would keep their energy high enough to keep moving forward. In fact, apart from Lightning letting Caius know when she was going to go to sleep, they spent the rest of their evening in silence.

Perhaps it was rude, but to be fair she supposed they weren’t exactly friends, at least insofar as she was concerned – and if he wasn’t in a talkative mood then she supposed that she couldn’t fault him for it. Actually, she preferred his silence to him talking just for the sake of hearing the sound of his own voice.

Lightning smoothed out the imperfections on the surface of the yakshini robe she claimed as her bed, if only out of respect for the people who had _formerly_ lived there. When the former inhabitants departed, the beds were left unmade, at least insofar as she could tell from the deteriorating metal bed frames tucked away in a back room of the house, invisible from the outside, or from the moth-eaten and decayed rags that might have been sheets at some point, but now were mere fragments of fabric. With those tended to she curled up on it and spent quite a while just lying there in the shadowed inside of the stone dwelling while outside the firelight flickered and Caius stood sentinel. The air was dry but still a fair bit warm – comfortable for a while, but after a bit of tossing and turning and time, she had to strip off her somewhat restrictive vest in order to get any semblance of real rest, revealing the cropped sleeveless turtleneck underneath. But then the air felt a bit too cool on her skin (and she felt a bit unnecessarily exposed, although a solid stone wall separated her from Caius and the Guardian didn’t seem like the type to regard anyone _in that way_ in the first place) and she opted to pull it back on but leave it open – offering protection and what little warmth she needed without being too tight.

After that, she drifted between dreams (of the future, of the past, of Serah, of Valhalla) and wakefulness (tentative, hazy; she found herself waking and with her heart pounding and wondering where the hell she was several times before the moon passed its highest point in the sky before she finally recalled). The fire never faded, at least not completely – and Caius never came in to wake her even when it _ought_ to have been far past time for him to rest and her to take over guard duty. She stretched and yawned and laid there for a few moments before pulling herself up and stepping outside into the firelight – not entirely refreshed, but enough to carry her through until sunrise when the world was quiet and sleepy enough for both her and Caius to rest at the same time. To her surprise, he didn’t seem tired at all despite their long day of traveling and his violet eyes were trained on the black skies above – clearer than they’d been previously, completely unobscured by trees or cliffs and just _open_.

She lingered there for a few moments, not sure whether it would be wise to disturb him, but it was _him_ that spoke first, and she stiffened at the words, although his rich voice took on a more… thoughtful tone. Wistful. “Cover all in shadow, wings of blackest night…” Last time he’d uttered those words, in Valhalla, he’d been about to introduce her anew to a world of hurt. But this time, no Chaos Bahamut followed, no beastly roar – merely a dry, but not entirely humorless laugh. Perhaps the ghost of a smile, too, if the firelight wasn’t playing tricks on her. “Perhaps I ought to rethink that one.”

Lightning turned her gaze to the sky – enough stars dotted it out here that some regions didn’t even look black, but rather a deep blue that was _almost_ black, and would have been black if her eyes hadn’t adjusted fully to the relative darkness. The moon hovered just past its apex as a sliver of silver that, with each passing night, would peek further and further out of the shadows before hiding away again. “Maybe,” she replied, and that was all she could bring herself to say in response, taking the moment instead to scan the sky in all of its silent glory, lips parted a bit.

And then Caius chuckled again – and distinctly, it lacked the mocking tone it usually carried when it was directed toward her. Instead it sounded warm – friendly, even, and definitely entirely foreign. The Guardian patted the ground beside him and invited her there with three words: “Sit with me.”

It could have easily been ‘ _come here,’_ just two words – or in just one, _‘sit.’_ But no. _‘Sit **with me**.’_ It stunned her for a moment, putting her at a loss and she had no choice but to accept his invitation. They sat closer than they ever really had before (well, apart from maybe once or twice, but those times had always been with a _purpose_ ); their shoulders could touch if they leaned ever so slightly together. She could feel Caius’s warmth even through his armor. It – it wasn’t unpleasant, she had to admit, even when she reminded herself how awful Caius could be. He’d killed her once. He had it out for her for the longest time in Valhalla; she had simply been an obstacle to be dealt with. And guiltily she admitted to herself that she regarded him in much the same way: the only thing keeping her from returning home to her friends and family. From having a normal life after the nightmare that had been being a Pulse l’Cie on a fearful Cocoon, regarded as an enemy of the _world_ and ultimately becoming responsible for the planet’s fall – leaving Fang and Vanille to carry it on their shoulders after erecting the crystal pillar. The key to her redemption in the goddess’s eyes.

They sat in comfortable silence for a few moments before Lightning finally found the courage to scrape up more words – “Cocoon’s nights were never like this.”

He hummed, perhaps in amusement. “Not easy to get a view of this sky from the inside of the shell, I suppose.”

“Yeah. I – the cities above us were about as close as we got. The fal’Cie filled in some dark spots with light, but it was all artificial in the end.”

“What a shame.”

“We get to see the sky now, though.”

“In that regard, the Day of Ragnarok was a blessing.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” She smiled a bit, tilting her head to the side a bit. “Feel sorry for the ones that didn’t make it, though.”

He glanced at her somewhat curiously.

“The Purge,” she said simply, and a spark of understanding flickered in his eyes before he turned his gaze back up to the sky. The Purge claimed many – and that was to say nothing of those who died in the chaos of Eden that day. And of course, those whose times passed before the planet’s fall would be doomed to never see this sky as well, which was a shame – but that was just how it was, and there was no bringing back the dead.

They lapsed into silence once more, but it wasn’t long until Caius broke it: “Tell me, Lightning. Did your people weave stories into your ‘stars’?”

She blinked. “Uh, well, there was this one cluster of stars that people called the big dipper, that the fal’Cie projected. Mostly our constellations were named for the places that made them or the major fal’Cie living there, so on the other side of Bodhum people’d have a Bodhum or a Siren constellation or whatever.”

He seemed disappointed, but not for long – and he seemed to have found a purpose when scanning the sky for several moments. Lightning was about to tell him to get some rest and usher him away before one strong hand fell upon her shoulder and she stiffened for a moment, unused to the touch. After a moment he seemed to get the hint and let his hand fall away, but he’d succeeded in getting her attention in any case and he pointed at a seemingly-arbitrarily chosen spot in the sky and declared, “There. That is our big dipper.”

The stars in question were bright enough that Lightning could pick them out easily, and she smiled a bit. “Huh, guess we borrowed that one from Pulse, then.”

“There’s no shame in that. Ours, however, is part of the larger—” he paused and gestured to a broader group of stars – which included the big dipper—“Ugallu constellation. Well, _we_ called it the ugallu. Other nations had their own interpretations; tribes of the plains often identified it as a megistotherian, and its smaller counterpart _there_ as a gorgonopsid.” He gestured toward a smaller dipper-shaped constellation at that. “But we thought of that one either as an uridimmu or a small ladle, depending on who you asked.”

“What if I asked you?”

“I am partial to the ladle. We have enough beasts in the sky.”

She somewhat successfully managed to bite back a laugh. “I can see that.” Pause. “Any more?”

“Of _course_.” His eyes seemed to light up, just a little, and he smiled as he pointed out a new constellation in another region of the sky, near the southern horizon. “There’s Bahamut.”

“You named _clusters of stars_ for eidolons?”

“Yes; many – you didn’t?”

She paused. “No. We put them on parade instead. Remember when I told you about Nautilus?”

“I would rather not.”

Lightning laughed a bit. “That’s where _we_ kept _our_ eidolons.”

“A shame. Eidolons were very important to _us_ – we named our star signs for them where other nations named them for… Far more mundane things. Sheep. Urns of water. Pairs of fish. Their loss.” He shrugged and grunted, turning his gaze away from the night sky and letting his violet eyes fall upon Lightning. “You came out for something?”

He met his eyes levelly, the ghost of a smile toying with the corners of her lips. “Uh – yeah. You can rest if you need to; I’ll take it from here.”

He flashed her a grateful smile and rose to his feet slowly. “Then I’ll bore you with my ramblings no longer. The night is quiet – so you shouldn’t have any trouble.”

“Sleep well, Caius.”

“I will. Thank you, Lightning.” And he disappeared into the stone dwelling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live... I die... I live again, and bring with me more CaiRai! I mean, i never ran out of CaiRai. In my word document I'm past chapter 35ish. But still.
> 
> I actually forgot I wrote this chapter haha, re-reading my handiwork was a wild ride hhhhgnh


End file.
